Trump confirmed the decision to hand over the Chagos Archipelago of Britain to Mauritius

US President Donald Trump has confirmed the British government's decision to return the Chagos archipelago to Mauritius, reports The Telegraph.

“At the moment, we are working to finalize the agreement with the Mauritian government and sign the deal. As I understand it, at this current stage, after discussions with the US on this matter, it only pertains to us and the Mauritian government,” said a source from the office of UK government leader Keir Starmer.

Mauritius has been a British colony since 1814 and gained independence in 1968. The Chagos archipelago was separated from Mauritius in 1965 when the country was still a British colony. Britain purchased it for £3 million and declared it its territory in the Indian Ocean. The largest island in the archipelago, Diego Garcia, has been leased to the US, where a British-American military base was established.

On October 3, 2024, an agreement was reached for Britain to hand over Chagos to Mauritius. At the same time, the military base on Diego Garcia will be retained. London and Port Louis have signed the agreement, under which the base will be leased for 99 years. The United States has supported this decision.