UK insists it will not compromise on national security

British military/PHOTO via Instagram @royalairforceuk

LONDON - Britain has stressed it "will never compromise" on national security, rejecting US President Donald Trump's remarks criticising its plan to hand sovereignty of a small group of Indian Ocean islands to Mauritius.

"The UK will never compromise on our national security," a government spokesman said in a statement after Trump called the Chagos Islands deal a "very foolish act."

"We are acting because the British base in Diego Garcia (one of the Chagos Islands) is under threat after a court decision weakened our position and would prevent it from operating as planned in the future," he continued, quoted by ANTARA from Anadolu, Tuesday, January 20.

Last May, Britain signed an agreement handing sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius in return for securing a strategic British-US military base.

Under the deal, the East African country gained control of the Chagos Islands from Britain, allowing the US and Britain to continue to operate the strategic Diego Garcia military base for the next 99 years.

Last year, Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned that without an agreement, the legal status would leave them powerless to prevent China or other countries - including China, which has held joint exercises near the base - from establishing their own bases on the outer islands.

"This agreement secures the US-UK joint base operation on Diego Garcia for generations to come, with strong provisions to keep its unique capabilities intact and prevent our enemies from getting in," the spokesperson said.

The statement also mentioned how the deal had been publicly welcomed by the US, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, as well as other international partners including India, Japan, and South Korea.

In the early 19th century, Britain took over the islands after the surrender of French forces.

Mauritius and its dependent territories, including the Chagos Archipelago, were officially proclaimed a British colony in 1814 under the Treaty of Paris.

The Chagos Islands were separated from Mauritius in 1965 by the British. Mauritius gained independence in 1968.