UK says ‘good progress’ being made on Chagos deal despite backlash at claims Labour will pay Mauritius nearly £9BILLION_Nhy
The UK insisted ‘good progress’ is being made on a Chagos deal today despite a furious backlash at claims of payments to Mauritius.
A joint statement said ‘further productive discussions’ had been held on reaching an agreement ‘in both sides’ interests’.
The positive signals came after it emerged Britain could hand Mauritius about £90million a year alongside ceding sovereignty of the archipelago – which hosts a strategically vital UK-US military base.
Ministers have been scrambling to save the deal following criticism of its terms by the new Mauritian prime minister and allies of Donald Trump.
The joint statement released this morning said: ‘Representatives from Mauritius and the UK held further productive discussions in London this week on the future of the Chagos Archipelago.
Labour made the shock announcement in October that it was going to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, which has been a British overseas territory for more than 200 years
Keir Starmer’s spokesman previously dismissed reports that the Chagos Islands deal could cost Britain £800million a year as ‘completely out of the ballpark’
‘Good progress has been made and discussions are ongoing to reach an agreement that is in both sides’ interests.
‘Both countries reiterated their commitment to concluding a treaty providing that Mauritius is sovereign over the Chagos Archipelago; and that would ensure the long-term, secure and effective operation of the base on Diego Garcia.’
According to the Financial Times and Bloomberg, the Government is offering to frontload a tranche of payments to Mauritius in order to finalise the draft agreement.
Ministers have so far kept silent on how much it will cost the UK to lease the military base on Diego Garcia, the largest of the Chagos Islands, under the terms of the deal.
But it is reported Britain is offering about £90million a year for the initial 99-year lease, which would be a total of £8.9billion.
It is also claimed – as a sweetener to finalise the deal before Mr Trump officially becomes US President again on January 20 – that the Government is proposing to pay an initial sum covering several years’ worth of payments.
Downing Street has not denied that the Chagos Islands deal could cost £90million a year – but No10 said it would not get into a ‘running commentary on those discussions’.
Keir Starmer’s spokesman previously dismissed reports that the Chagos Islands deal could cost Britain £800million a year as ‘completely out of the ballpark’.
Labour sparked shock in October by announcing that it was going to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, which has been a British overseas territory for more than 200 years.
As part of the arrangement, the Diego Garcia base will remain operational for at least 99 years.
A joint statement said ‘further productive discussions’ had been held on reaching an agreement ‘in both sides’ interests’
But the former leader of Mauritius who agreed it, Pravind Jugnauth, was ousted in a recent election and the deal has yet to be officially signed.
Opponents of the handover – who have expressed concern that Mauritius is an ally of China – are hopeful that Mr Trump will force Labour to scrap the deal when he returns to the White House.
Labour has insisted it had to strike a deal to protect the Diego Garcia base after the International Court of Justice ruled the UK’s administration of the islands was ‘unlawful’.
Chagossians were forced to leave the central Indian Ocean territory by 1973 to make way for the military base.
