US Eyes Direct Chagos Islands Purchase
At the heart of the dispute lies Diego Garcia — a joint UK-US military base widely regarded as one of America's most critical overseas installations. The facility houses approximately 2,500 US military personnel, supports B-2 bomber deployments, has been instrumental in operations against Houthi targets in Yemen, and has served as a launchpad for strikes on Iran.
The Chagos Islands are currently under British control, though London agreed last year to transfer sovereignty to Mauritius in exchange for a 99-year lease on the base. That decision was effectively compelled by a protracted colonial sovereignty dispute — one that culminated in a 2019 International Court of Justice ruling that Britain's 1965 separation of the islands from Mauritius was unlawful and constituted a violation of the right to self-determination.
US President Donald Trump initially backed the handover arrangement before abruptly reversing course in January, branding the deal "an act of great stupidity" and a direct threat to national security, while cautioning that China and Russia "have noticed this act of total weakness." London subsequently suspended the agreement pending fresh negotiations with Washington.
Now the calculus appears to have shifted further. "US officials have drawn up a proposal to bypass Britain and make its own deal to take control of Diego Garcia," The Telegraph reported, adding that the plan is among several options circulating within the Trump administration. The proposal reportedly caught the eye of US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who brought it directly to Trump's attention.
Under the envisioned framework, the UK would first complete the handover of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, after which Washington would move to purchase the territory outright from Port Louis — leaving Britain as little more than a spectator in a sovereignty dispute over land it has held for more than two centuries.
Mauritius, cited by Reuters, said it had "taken note of the information reported by The Telegraph" but stressed it "has not received any official proposal" from the US. The government also made its bottom line unambiguous, asserting that the republic's sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago is "non-negotiable."
The report lands against a backdrop of growing American appetite for territorial expansion under Trump. The US president has recently revived calls to acquire Greenland from Denmark and has repeatedly referred to Canada as the "51st state" — moves that have further strained Washington's already turbulent relationships with its traditional allies.
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