Donald Trump has signed and approved Sir Keir Starmers controversial deal to cede the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
The details of the agreement with the Mauritian government are now being finalised which includes a leaseback arrangement for the Diego Garcia airbase.
Speaking about the progress of the deal on Tuesday, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said; “I think the finalisation of the deal is ongoing, but we’ll obviously provide an update as and when we’ve got one.”
Asked whether the UK was still waiting for Mr Trump to approve the agreement, he said: “I mean, you will have seen from the president that he recognised the strength of the deal.
“I think we are now working with the Mauritian government to finalise the deal and sign the treaty. My understanding is it’s now between us and the Mauritian government to finalise the deal following the discussions with the US.”
It is understood the agreement will not be put back to the US for approval after it is signed off by Mauritius.
Downing Street did not provide a timeline for the final stages of negotiations. The spokesman said: “I haven’t got an update on that, but it will come to Parliament following the finalisation and signing of the treaty.”
The development confirms that Mr Trump, who was initially thought to be sceptical of the deal, will not attempt to block the handover. He first indicated his support for the plan during Sir Keir Starmer’s trip to Washington in February.
He said leasing the US military base on Diego Garcia, one of the islands, for 140 years was “powerful” and “doesn’t sound bad”.
Asked whether he would sign off the deal, Mr Trump replied: “Well, we’re going to have some discussions about that very soon, and I have a feeling it’s going to work out very well.
“And I think we’ll be inclined to go along with your country. We have to be given the details, but it doesn’t sound bad.”
David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, had previously admitted the deal would not happen without Mr Trump’s support.
Sir Keir announced the pact to hand over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, a strategically placed archipelago in the Indian Ocean, in October. It was highly controversial because of the US military base on Diego Garcia.
However, the deal has faced criticism due to its potential cost up to 18billion. The International Court of Justice earlier ruled that the archipelago belongs to Mauritius.
The Chagos Islands represent an important part of UK-US security plans because of the airbase, which is strategically important for both countries’ militaries.
Recall the agreement was signed off by Joe Biden’s administration last year, but Mr Trump’s team asked to look at it again after the US election amid concerns that it could harm US national security because Mauritius is an ally of China.
Mauritius also ordered a review of the terms after a change in government last year, throwing the future of the pact into doubt.
The Conservatives and Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, had called for the agreement to be scrapped, and Marco Rubio, Mr Trump’s secretary of state, also criticised it.
Under the original agreement, the UK would relinquish the islands’ sovereignty to Mauritius but maintain a 99-year lease on Diego Garcia. As part of the deal, it said it would provide a package of financial support, including annual payments and infrastructure investment.
Neither side has said how much is involved. However, reports suggested Mauritius had requested as much as £800 million per year and billions of pounds in reparations to secure the base.
Mauritius has long argued that it was illegally forced to give the Chagos Islands away in return for its own independence from the UK in 1968. Until very recently, the UK insisted that Mauritius had no legitimate claim to the islands.
