Highlights
- Ramgoolam told UK national security adviser Jonathan Powell that Mauritius's sovereignty claim was “not negotiable”.
- US president Donald Trump has opposed the agreement over security concerns surrounding the joint UK-US military base at Diego Garcia.
- The delay is affecting Mauritius's finances, with the country facing a reported £165 million budget deficit.
MAURITIUS has threatened legal action against the UK over delays to an agreement to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, warning that the dispute must be resolved quickly, reported the Telegraph.
Mauritian prime minister Navin Ramgoolam issued the warning during a meeting with Jonathan Powell, the UK’s national security adviser, in London last week.
Ramgoolam told Powell that Mauritius was prepared to “take the legal route” unless the deadlock was “expeditiously resolved”, , the report added.
He also stressed that Mauritius’s claim to sovereignty over the Chagos Islands, including Diego Garcia, was “not negotiable”.
The warning marks a fresh setback for the Labour government’s plans to hand over the Indian Ocean archipelago to Mauritius while retaining access to Diego Garcia, which hosts a strategically important joint British-American military base.
It also raised the possibility of renewed legal proceedings over the islands’ status, following Mauritius’s earlier challenge at the International Court of Justice.
Trump’s opposition stalls agreement
The proposed transfer has been held up by opposition from US president Donald Trump, who has raised concerns about the implications for the security of the Diego Garcia base.
At the United Nations summit in New York last month, Trump described the agreement as “terrible” and called on prime minister Andy Burnham to review it.
The US president had previously described the deal as a “big mistake”.
Defence secretary Wes Streeting has said the agreement cannot proceed without the White House’s support.
Britain and Mauritius agreed last year that sovereignty of the Chagos Islands would be transferred to Mauritius, with the UK retaining control of Diego Garcia under a 99-year arrangement.
However, the legislation required to implement the treaty has been paused, leaving the agreement in limbo.
Speaking to reporters in New York in September, Burnham said he remained determined to find a way forward.
Burnham acknowledged that no agreement had yet been reached but said he would continue working with both Mauritius and the US.
“The assurance I gave was I will work towards a resolution,” he said. “At the moment we don't have that, but I gave an assurance that I would commit to working towards one.”
Downing Street said at the time that Burnham and Ramgoolam had agreed that their foreign ministers should meet during the United Nations general assembly.
Mauritius faces financial pressure
According to The Telegraph, Ramgoolam told Mauritian cabinet ministers that the failure to ratify the treaty had made the existing situation “untenable”.
He had also used his visit to London to meet his legal team and finalise the government’s legal strategy.
Mauritius had expected its first payment under the agreement at the end of 2025. The delay has contributed to financial pressure, with the country facing a reported budget deficit of £165 million, the report added.
Under the proposed arrangement, Britain would retain access to Diego Garcia for almost a century in return for payments to Mauritius. The financial commitment has been reported differently depending on how the payments over the life of the agreement are calculated.
The British Government has previously indicated that retaining the long-term operation of the base is its central objective.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “Diego Garcia is a key strategic military asset for both the UK and the US, and is vital to our shared national security. Maintaining its long-term operation has been the UK’s driving objective since negotiations began in 2022.
“We have always been clear that an agreement with Mauritius must protect UK interests and command US support. As the PM has said, we continue to work with both the US and Mauritius to find a diplomatic resolution.”
Conservatives condemn Chagos plan
The proposed handover has also faced criticism from the opposition Conservatives, who have described the agreement as a surrender of British territory.
Conservative MP Dame Priti Patel accused the Labour government of misleading the public over its plans.
“It is a national disgrace that the Labour government continue to lie to the British people about its Chagos plans,” she said.
Patel called on the government to abandon the treaty, arguing that it put British sovereignty and national security at risk.
“Instead, they continue to follow in Sir Keir Starmer’s footsteps with this reckless surrender of a sovereign territory, while putting our national security at risk. This madness must end,” she said.
The government maintains that any agreement must protect the military base and secure American backing.
According to reports, the British government was considering waiting until Trump leaves office in January 2029 before seeking to revive the agreement.
