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Britain will wait for Donald Trump's blessing before finalizing a deal with Mauritius over the future of a UK-US military base in the Indian Ocean, according to people familiar with the discussions.
The UK government has in recent weeks been hoping to reach an agreement with Mauritius over the Chagos Islands before the president-elect is sworn in on January 20.
On Sunday, British officials said “good progress” had been made in negotiations after London offered to pre-pay Port Louis for a proposed 99-year lease of Diego Garcia, the largest island in the archipelago and home to a strategic location. defense base.
The Mauritian government will hold a special Cabinet meeting on Wednesday morning to discuss, and approve the latest proposals.
However, Britain is no longer pushing to formally announce a deal before the US is set to do so unless the deal receives express approval from the incoming administration, the people said.
While various timing factors are still at play, confidence has faded among British government figures that the deal will be kept before next Monday.
The UK's top Foreign Office official is in Washington this week for talks on the issue with representatives from outgoing president Joe Biden's team and incoming Trump's team, according to people familiar with the situation.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Marco Rubio, Trump's choice for secretary of state, criticized the plan last fall, citing concerns that it could strengthen China's interests in the Indian Ocean.
Mike Waltz, Trump's incoming national security adviser, has raised concerns in the past and has actively pursued the issue. In 2022, he he warned Negotiations could jeopardize the Diego Garcia naval base.
However, UK foreign secretary David Lammy told MPs in November that US officials from the White House, the Pentagon, the Defense Department and intelligence agencies had backed the proposal, indicating he hoped Trump and his allies would back it. of it. details.
Trump has not commented publicly on the proposed deal and did not during his phone call with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in late December.
British government figures have long argued privately that the UK was not trying to force the US to support the deal, which affects the future of the joint military base in Diego Garcia, which is used by US long-range bombers and warships.
The UK had to return to the negotiating table after Mauritian leader Pravind Jugnauth, first agreed last October, was thrown out of office in a general election.
His successor, current Mauritian prime minister Navin Ramgoolam, said the new administration wanted to review the terms of the deal, which has yet to be ratified.
Satyajit Boolell, a former Mauritian prosecutor close to the administration, said Britain's mistake was to start negotiations with the outgoing government.
“The new government needs to improve the deal,” Boolell said, saying he wanted shorter employment and more money. Once Britain acknowledged the “illegal occupation” of the Chagos, it said there was a situation for Mauritius to negotiate directly with Washington on the terms of Diego Garcia's lease.
“Negotiations should be between Mauritius and the US. They live in Diego Garcia where we have empire,” he said.
While the last Conservative government opened negotiations with Mauritius in 2022, after a UN court ruled that the UK does not have sovereignty over the Chagos islands, the Tory party has been heavily critical of the proposed deal in recent months.
Priti Patel, the Tory foreign secretary, on Tuesday accused Starmer of “handing over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands”, calling the deal “the most shameful failure of British diplomacy this century”.
The Foreign Office said last week: “We believe it is important to move the agreement forward as soon as possible but we have not yet put a firm date on it”. He added: “We will only conclude a deal that is in the UK's national interest and our US red lines.”