The UK government has withdrawn legislation to ratify its agreement to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, after the United States declined to support the plan. Officials confirmed the bill could not progress before the current parliamentary session ends, halting the process for now.
The proposed deal would have seen sovereignty transferred while the UK leased Diego Garcia for 99 years, amid ongoing legal and diplomatic pressure.
Key developments:
• US refusal to exchange treaty letters blocked required amendments to the 1966 UK-US agreement
• Diego Garcia base remains central to UK-US defence strategy amid wider UK-US diplomatic strain
• The International Court of Justice (2019) advisory opinion stated the UK should end administration of the territory
In a post on X, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the length of time it took for the government to drop the bill “is another damning indictment of a prime minister, who fought to hand over British sovereign territory and pay £35bn to use a crucial military base which was already ours”.
While the Conservatives have staunchly opposed the treaty, negotiations for a deal began under the last Tory administration.
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