WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump, shifting his tone again, warned Britain on Wednesday not to “give away” a key Indian Ocean base, saying it would be vital if the United States attacks Iran.

Trump spoke hours after the State Department again offered US support to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s deal to return to Mauritius the Chagos Islands, home to the joint US-UK base at Diego Garcia.

Under the agreement, Britain would instead pay to lease the strategic base for a century.

“Prime Minister Starmer should not lose control, for any reason, of Diego Garcia, by entering a tenuous, at best, 100 Year Lease,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

The president’s statement is in conflict with that of State Department’s, which supported the UK-Mauritius deal

“This land should not be taken away from the UK and, if it is allowed to be, it will be a blight on our Great Ally,” he wrote.

“We will always be ready, willing, and able to fight for the UK, but they have to remain strong in the face of Wokeism, and other problems put before them. DO NOT GIVE AWAY DIEGO GARCIA!”

In his post, Trump suggested he was concerned about attacks “emanating from the Iranian government”.

“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,” Trump said, referring to a US air base in England.

He said he was concerned by “an attack that would potentially be made on the United Kingdom, as well as other friendly Countries”.

Britain had kept control of the Chagos Islands after Mauritius gained independence from Britain in the 1960s. Britain evicted thousands of people, who have since mounted legal challenges for compensation.

Trump said the claims by local people came from “entities never known of before” and were “fictitious in nature”.

On Tuesday, the State Department announced three days of talks next week with Mauritius on maintaining the base.

In its statement, the State Department said: “The United States supports the decision of the United Kingdom to proceed with its agreement with Mauritius concerning the Chagos archipelago.”

Asked which statement to believe, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the social media post came directly from Trump and “should be taken as the policy of the Trump administration”.

It marked the latest shift. When Starmer’s Labour government first reached the deal, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hailed it as “historic”.

Trump then called it an “act of GREAT STUPIDITY” which showed why the United States should conquer Greenland from ally Denmark.

Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2026