‘America will be furious and Beijing delighted’: How Starmer handed Chagos to China

Critics described the decision to give the archipelago, a vital national asset, to Mauritius as a ‘strategic disaster’

Nigel Farage has claimed that “our American allies will be furious and Beijing delighted” after Sir Keir Starmer gave up the Chagos Islands.
The Reform UK leader said the decision to hand over the archipelago to Mauritius was a “strategic disaster” and that “Labour are making the world a more dangerous place”.
His remarks came after the decision to end 200 years of British rule in the Indian Ocean Territory was announced at 11.04am with the ping of an email alert.
In a humdrum press release titled “UK-Mauritius deal to protect national security”, the Foreign Office revealed that the UK was giving away the strategic archipelago.
With Parliament still in its post-conference slumber, the timing meant that David Lammy avoided having to unveil the move in the Commons cauldron.
The announcement was seemingly rushed out with just days of recess to get ahead of the Mauritian election campaign, which starts on Friday.
As such it came as a shock to much of the outside world, which had not been expecting the new Labour government to wrap up a deal so quickly.
It was, after all, only nine months since Lord Cameron, the former foreign secretary, had halted talks on the handover amid security concerns over Chinese influence.
Chagos, at a strategic waypoint in the Indian Ocean, is home to the Diego Garcia air base, which is a major military asset for both Britain and the US in the region.
The archipelago has been in British hands for more than 200 years but is claimed by Mauritius, an island nation which lies almost 1,400 miles away.
Under the Tories those claims were initially entertained, but then rejected over concerns about the influence China wields on the Mauritian government.
But since sweeping to power in July, the Labour government had moved swiftly to sew up a deal, manoeuvring all the key pieces into place.
Last month the Foreign Secretary drafted in Jonathan Powell, a foreign policy veteran of the Tony Blair years, to oversee the final negotiations.
Mr Powell had particular experience of such transfers of power, having been involved in the handover of Hong Kong to the Chinese in July 1997.
Mr Lammy gave the Government’s reasoning in a statement, insisting uncertainty over Chagos’s future was putting the future of Diego Garcia “under threat”.
“Today’s agreement secures this vital military base for the future,” he said.
“It will strengthen our role in safeguarding global security, shut down any possibility of the Indian Ocean being used as a dangerous illegal migration route to the UK, as well as guaranteeing our long-term relationship with Mauritius, a close Commonwealth partner.”
It was immediately clear, however, that Downing Street had already anticipated the significant backlash that the decision would provoke.
Just over 40 minutes later the Foreign Office sent journalists an email directing them to a statement by Joe Biden.
No 10 had called in the cavalry with the US president immediately dismissing speculation that the handover would prompt US ire.
“It is a clear demonstration that through diplomacy and partnership, countries can overcome long-standing historical challenges to reach peaceful and mutually beneficial outcomes,” the White House said.
“This agreement affirms Mauritian sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago, while granting the United Kingdom the authority to exercise the sovereign rights of Mauritius with respect to Diego Garcia.”
A few hours later another statement dropped from Anthony Blinken, the US secretary of state, who said the deal “reflects the power of diplomacy to solve longstanding challenges”.
But by that point the furious response to the announcement was already underway, with Boris Johnson leading the charge.
In an interview with The Telegraph, the former prime minister branded the decision “feeble” and said it would weaken Britain’s standing in the world.
Raising his voice, he said: “No, no! I mean, God, that’s another, I mean, what’s he doing?
“The Chagos Islands are a vital national asset. And have you seen how far away Mauritius is from the Chagos islands? I have, and it’s ridiculous.
“It’s absolutely ridiculous. But this is what they’re like. They are lefty lawyers from Doughty Street and Matrix chambers. They always think their own country is in the wrong.
“You don’t buy any influence by doing this. It’s a sort of delusion that the world thinks better of you for doing this. They don’t, they think you’re feeble.”
Sir Iain Duncan Smith, a former Tory leader who has been sanctioned by China, also described the agreement as “astonishing”.
“At the heart of this lies the real threat from China and we have a government of Mauritius that is very pro-China,” he said.
“If China gets involved with Mauritius, I cannot see how you can continue to use that place as it is now or how the Americans can either.”
All four Tory leadership candidates also quickly began jostling to spearhead the opposition.
Robert Jenrick, the former immigration minister and race frontrunner, said: “It’s taken three months for Starmer to surrender Britain’s strategic interests.
“This is a dangerous capitulation that will hand our territory to an ally of Beijing.”
Mauritius and China struck a free trade agreement in 2021 – the first of its kind between Beijing and an African country – leading to a large rise in trade.
Mr Jenrick’s condemnation was echoed by Kemi Badenoch, who added: “Anyone who has been paying attention to the geopolitical climate will understand the strategic necessity of these islands.
“Labour has either not been paying attention or don’t care. Either way, this decision weakens UK influence across the world.”
While it may appear to be the most unifying of issues, it sparked conflict between two of the leadership camps.
When James Cleverly, the shadow home secretary, branded the decision as “weak, weak, weak”, his rival Tom Tugendhat pointed out that it was Mr Cleverly who, as foreign secretary, oversaw the drawing up of much of the deal that Labour has enacted.
Mr Tugendhat said: “This deal not only threatens our security but also undermines our allies, opening the possibility of China gaining a military foothold in the Indian Ocean.
“It compromises both our national security and the stability of the region.”
But if Sir Keir took some pleasure at seeing the Tories scrap, criticism from Labour MPs of the deal will have also given him some cause for concern.
Peter Lamb, the MP for Crawley, said it was “very disappointing” that the islands had been handed over without the consent of the displaced Chagossian people, many of whom live in his constituency.
Posting on social media, he said: “The decision over the future of the islands belongs the Chagossian people, it’s not for the UK to bargain away. Sixty years on from their exile, they’ve been let down again.”
It was under Mr Johnson’s government that preparations for a possible handover began, spurred by a series of bruising legal defeats for the UK.
The government of Mauritius had taken repeated action to stake its claims to the island, culminating in a victory at the International Court of Justice in 2019.
Bureaucrats at the Foreign Office began work to comply with the non-binding judgment, fearing that failure to do so would damage Britain’s standing.
Talks were opened during Liz Truss’s brief tenure and carried on throughout Rishi Sunak’s time in Downing Street, when Mr Cleverly was foreign secretary.
Mr Sunak was warned against relinquishing the territory by a former head of the Royal Navy last year. 
Lord West of Spithead, a former First Sea Lord, said: “How on earth can the Government explain a decision to negotiate with Chinese-aligned Mauritius to hand over sovereignty of the strategically vital island of Diego Garcia, an island which is located some 2,152 kilometres (1,337 miles) from Mauritius itself. It would be a colossal mistake.”
It was only when Lord Cameron took over at the Foreign Office that the plans were stopped, by which time the outline of a deal had already been drawn up.
Less than a year later, and at the click of a send button, that process started by the Tories has been finished by Labour.