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The UK has delayed its plan to hand the Chagos Islands over to Mauritius after pressure from President Trump.

Some shit you should know before you dig in: If you’re unaware, the Chagos Islands are a chain of remote islands in the Indian Ocean that the UK has controlled since 1814. The largest island, Diego Garcia, is home to a joint UK-US military base that has been central to American operations for decades, including both Iraq invasions and bombing runs across Asia. In 2024, the UK and Mauritius reached an agreement that would hand full sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius, while the UK leased Diego Garcia back for 99 years at roughly £101 million (about $136 million) per year. Trump called the move an “act of great stupidity” in January and followed that up with a Truth Social post demanding the UK “DO NOT GIVE AWAY DIEGO GARCIA!”

What’s going on now: The UK government confirmed Saturday it is pausing the Chagos deal, citing the absence of US support as the reason it cannot move forward. A government spokesperson stopped short of calling it dead, saying the UK “continues to believe the agreement is the best way to protect the long-term future of the base,” but added that they have “always said we would only proceed with the deal if it has US support.” Despite this, Mauritius Foreign Minister Dhananjay Ramful said at an Indian Ocean Conference Saturday that his government would “spare no effort to seize any diplomatic or legal avenue to complete the decolonization process.”

The reaction at home was predictably split along political lines. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called the shelving of the deal long overdue, saying it “belongs on the ash heap of history” and accusing Starmer of nearly handing over sovereign British territory for a base “that was already ours.” Reform UK’s Nigel Farage called it “great news and long overdue,” while the Liberal Democrats took shots at everyone involved (blaming the Tories for starting it and Labor for mishandling it).

This comes as relations between Trump and Prime Minister Keir Starmer have been going to shit lately, particularly since the US-Israel war on Iran kicked off in late February. Starmer initially refused to allow the US to use British air bases for offensive strikes against Iran, which enraged Trump, who said Starmer was “not Winston Churchill.” Starmer eventually reversed course and allowed defensive use of the bases.