MAURITIUS’s new Prime Minister has demanded a review of the Chagos Islands deal in a bitter blow to Sir Keir Starmer.
Navin Ramgoolam, who swept to power in a landslide election this month, said his cabinet would now assess the agreement before deciding on next steps.
He told the Mauritian Parliament the details of the deal were “unknown to the new government” throughout the two years of negotiations.
Sir Keir insisted he is confident the agreement, which hands Mauritius sovereignty over the islands while preserving the UK-US military base on Diego Garcia, will be ratified soon.
But Ramgoolam’s decision to launch a review has thrown the deal into doubt – with officials in Mauritius already voicing concerns about the financial terms and sovereignty arrangements.
To complicate things, US President Biden supported the deal when it was announced last month but the incoming Trump administration has already expressed reservations.
Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick as secretary of state, has suggested that the deal would “provide an opportunity for communist China to gain valuable intelligence on our naval support facility”.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, who is close to Trump, also claimed the new US administration would greet Sir Keir’s deal with “outright hostility”.
