Thursday, January 29, 2026-UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has warned of growing strain inside the transatlantic alliance after stating that U.S. intelligence agencies do not share Donald Trump’s opposition to the Chagos Islands deal.
According to Starmer, American intelligence bodies previously reviewed and supported the agreement, which transfers sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory to Mauritius while securing a long-term lease for the strategically critical Diego Garcia military base. He stressed that expert security assessments remain aligned, even as Trump publicly attacks the deal.
Starmer made the comments amid heightened diplomatic pressure, noting that there has been no formal reversal of position from U.S. intelligence or the State Department.
While Trump has dismissed the agreement as a strategic mistake and linked his criticism to broader geopolitical demands, UK officials insist the deal is finalized and legally sound. The disconnect between political rhetoric and intelligence-backed policy has injected uncertainty into an already fragile security environment.
The stakes are immediate and significant. Diego Garcia remains a cornerstone of U.S. and allied military operations across the Middle East and the Indo-Pacific, supporting surveillance, logistics, and power projection.
Starmer has reaffirmed the UK’s commitment to the agreement, warning that undermining intelligence-led decisions with political opposition risks weakening allied credibility. As tensions rise, the dispute highlights a deeper challenge: maintaining strategic unity when political leadership and security expertise diverge.
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