US President Donald Trump issued a strong public warning to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer today, urging him to scrap plans for a 100-year lease of the strategically vital Diego Garcia island in the Indian Ocean. In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump said the lease would weaken British control over the territory and could harm both the United Kingdom and the United States if tensions with Iran escalate.

Trumpwrote: “I have been telling Prime Minister Keir Starmer, of the United Kingdom, that Leases are no good when it comes to Countries, and that he is making a big mistake by entering a 100 Year Lease with whoever it is that is ‘claiming’ Right, Title, and Interest to Diego Garcia, strategically located in the Indian Ocean.”

He added that the current claims to the island appear “fictitious in nature” and warned that losing control would be “a blight on our Great Ally.”

"Starmer is losing control of this important Island by claims of entities never known of before. In our opinion, they are fictitious in nature," his post reads.

Diego Garcia is a small, remote atoll in the middle of the Indian Ocean.

Trump highlighted the base’s importance in any potential conflict with Iran. He wrote: “Should Iran decide not to make a Deal, it may be necessary for the United States to use Diego Garcia, and the Airfield located in Fairford, in order to eradicate a potential attack by a highly unstable and dangerous Regime — An attack that would potentially be made on the United Kingdom, as well as other friendly Countries.”

He argued that a long-term lease would put the island at risk and weaken the UK’s position.

Trump also linked the issue to broader concerns: “Prime Minister Starmer should not lose control, for any reason, of Diego Garcia, by entering a tenuous, at best, 100 Year Lease. This land should not be taken away from the U.K. and, if it is allowed to be, it will be a blight on our Great Ally. We will always be ready, willing, and able to fight for the U.K., but they have to remain strong in the face of Wokeism, and other problems put before them. DO NOT GIVE AWAY DIEGO GARCIA!”

The post comes amid ongoing US negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program and regional activities. Trump has repeatedly said military options remain on the table if talks fail. The US already has one striker group in the region, and another is heading towards the Persian Gulf.

Since the 1980s, Mauritius has asserted its claim over Chagos Islands. In 2019, the International Court of Justice, ruled that the UK was “under an obligation to bring to an end its administration of the archipelago as rapidly as possible”.

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