As President Trump condemns government's Chagos agreement again, what is in the deal?
US president Donald Trump has once again criticised the UK's Chagos Islands deal – 24 hours after his administration said he supported it.
Mr Trump said that the deal to hand sovereignty of the strategically important islands to Mauritius was a "big mistake" due to the presence of the joint US-UK military base.
The plans would see the UK lease back the base on Diego Garcia; however, the second-term Republican president said that the arrangement was "tenuous" and "no good".
Do not give away Diego Garcia, Trump says
Mr Trump condemned Westminster's "great stupidity" for agreeing to the deal last month in a TruthSocial post, amid the row over his attempts to annex Greenland, despite his administration previously backing the agreement.
Suggesting the base could be vital for a US strike against Iran, and warning Tehran could launch an attack, Mr Trump urged Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to "NOT GIVE AWAY DIEGO GARCIA!"
The US State Department said it supported the deal that would return the Chagos archipelago to Mauritius only yesterday.
The former Apprentice businessman's position on the Chagos Islands has frequently changed as, earlier in February, he had backed the proposals, saying that Sir Keir's deal was "the best he could make".
The Government says the future of the base has been threatened by recent international court decisions.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said: "The deal to secure the joint US-UK military base on Diego Garcia is crucial to the security of the UK and our key allies, and to keeping the British people safe.
"The agreement we have reached is the only way to guarantee the long-term future of this vital military base."
What is in the UK government's Chagos deal?
In May 2025, the UK government signed a deal with Mauritius to secure the Diego Garcia base.
Diego Garcia was leased back to the United Kingdom for 99 years, while handing back sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius.
The base, which has a deep-water port, an airfield, and advanced communications and surveillance capabilities, will remain under the UK's full operational control.
Other provisions in the deal include a 24 nautical mile buffer zone where nothing can be built or placed without London's consent; a process to prevent any activities on the wider islands, many more than 100 miles away, from disrupting base operations; a strict ban on foreign security forces on the outer islands, whether civilian or military; and, a binding obligation to ensure the base is never undermined.
"This treaty secures the Diego Garcia military base for generations to come, protecting national and global security," then-Foreign Secretary David Lammy said.
"Without this deal, the land, sea and air operations of the base would become inoperable – doing nothing was not an option."
The cost of the deal per year is £101m, and the net present value of payments under the treaty is £3.4bn, according to the Ministry of Defence and Foreign Office.
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