Another reason ‘why Greenland has to be acquired’: Trump slams UK’s Chagos island deal
Trump, in a post on Truth Social, criticised UK for the deal wherein Britain would lease a military base on the territory and hand over the sovereignty.
This image realeased by the US Navy shows an aerial view of Diego Garcia. (U.S. Navy via AP/ File)
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday called out the UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer led-government for a deal, wherein Britain would cede sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago, which includes an island with a strategic US-UK air base, to Mauritius as an act of “great stupidity” and “total weakness”.
Trump, in a post on Truth Social, criticised UK for the deal wherein Britain would lease a military base on the territory and hand over the sovereignty. The US president said it is one of the reasons he wants the US to take over Greenland.
Washington had last year endorsed the move which gave the Indian Ocean islands to Mauritius but the UK retained the control of Diego Garcia’s military base under a 99-year lease.
What did Trump say
But Trump reversed the stance in the post and said, “Shockingly, our “brilliant” NATO Ally, the United Kingdom, is currently planning to give away the Island of Diego Garcia, the site of a vital US Military Base, to Mauritius, and to do so FOR NO REASON WHATSOEVER.”
He added, “There is no doubt that China and Russia have noticed this act of total weakness…The UK giving away extremely important land is an act of GREAT STUPIDITY, and is another in a very long line of National Security reasons why Greenland has to be acquired.”
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The comments by the Republican leader comes amid tensions with UK PM Starmer, who this week spoke against Trump’s ambitions to acquire Greenland by any means in order to counter Chinese and Russian threats.
The chain of more than 60 islands is located in the middle of the Indian Ocean off the tip of India and south of the Maldives. The Chagos Islands have been under the control of Britain since 1814, when they were ceded by France.
Chagos Islands is known for the Diego Garcia military base which has backed US military operations in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq. The United States acknowledged in 2008 that the base had also been used for clandestine rendition flights of terror suspects.
In response to Trump’s lashing, the UK government has said that the deal was made precisely for national security reasons. “We acted because the base on Diego Garcia was under threat after court decisions undermined our position and would have prevented it operating as intended in future,” a government spokesperson said.
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This image realeased by the US Navy shows an aerial view of Diego Garcia. (U.S. Navy via AP/ File) 
