Diego Garcia - "The most important military base on the planet"

Starmer's stupidity

Diego Garcia is a small island in the middle of the Indian Ocean, and the most important United States military base outside of America. Since 1814 it had been part of the Chagos Islands (British Indian Ocean Territory) group and "owned" by the United Kingdom; prior to that, France had possession for a period. In May 2025 the UK signed a treaty agreement to give the islands to Mauritius, and set in place a 99 year multi £billion lease in which it would continue to be operated by the UK and US. Whilst initially the US President Donald Trump agreed to the deal, this had all changed by 28 February 2026 when Israel and the US began strikes on Iran. UK Prime Minister Kier Starmer immediately banned the US from using its military bases in association with the conflict, and this included Diego Garcia. The US were outraged, and the "stupidity" of the decision to give the Chagos Islands away, and to then ban the US from using Diego Garcia, was proclaimed loud and clear by Trump. In fact, early in February Senator John Kennedy had called the decision out, leading the President to realise he had made a terrible mistake in supporting it back in 2025.

US Senator John Kennedy Absolutely Excoriates UK PM Keir Starmer For Chagos Islands Plan, Forbes Breaking News, 3 February 2026, YouTube, duration: 21.14 minutes.

The broader context to the deal was presented in the following video from 20 January 2026, prior to the Kennedy presentation and in connection with the Greenland purchase issue. It reveals that Starmer felt he was obliged to take the action due to the International Court of Justice earlier ruling that Mauritius and Indigenous people with claims to the Chagos Islands were now claiming ownership over the islands. There was no obligation by the US to abide by this decision, but Starmer, as a long time human rights lawyer, felt otherwise. Unfortunately he failed to take into account the international strategic significance of Diego Garcia, and of the concerns of the United States, though he stated otherwise at the time. 

Trump Targets Indian Ocean; Wants Diego Garcia Base for US Troops, Slams UK-Mauritius Chagos Islands, Times of India, 20 January 2026, YouTube, duration: minutes.

When Trump criticised Starmer as "no Winston Churchill" over this, it became a major scandal for the UK prime minister in the days after the initial Iran attack. Starmer eventually overturned his decision to "ban" American use of the Diego Garcia base, but the damage had been done. 

Senator Kennedy on 3 February had actually called on the UK to sell Diego Garcia to the US as a possible solution. This seemed reasonable, especially in light of the influence China held over Mauritius and the likelihood that it would set up bases in the Chagos Islands to negatively impact upon the importance and capabilities of Diego Garcia. Needless to say, when the US realised the path Starmer was taking, and had led them down, they quickly sought to find a solution which would provide their base with long term security. Trump's statement within the 2025 agreement that the US would have the right to protect the base from any external attack was shown to be not enough to enable that security. Though the treaty had been signed, it had yet to be ratified by the UK parliament and the US congress. This is a process currently in play.

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Chronology

early 1500

* The uninhabited Chagos Islands are first "discovered" by .... and first settled by Europeans.

1715 - 1810

* Chagos Islands owned by France and governed by the Isle de France (Mauritius). 

1814

* The UK acquires the Chagos Islands and Mauritius from France through the Treaty of Paris. 

1965

* The British give Mauritius independence and retain control of the Chagos Islands / British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) group.

1971

* The Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia begins construction by the US. 2000 locals are moved off the island, they being former plantation workers.

2024

* October - The UK foreign office announces an agreement to hand over soverignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.

2025

* May - the UK and Mauritius sign a treaty agreement.

2026

* 5 February - Senator Kennedy calls the deal stupidity and calls for the UK to sell Diego Garcia to the US.

* 1 March - Prime Minister Starmer bans the US from using Diego Garcia to support the conflict with Iran. 

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Alien base 

When Senator Kennedy called Diego Garcia "the most important military base on the planet" one of the reasons for this was the fact that beneath a surface of the island was an extensive underground rabbit warren of tunnels and storage facilities which housed, amongst other things, an Alien base used by both the Americans and their extraterrestrial allies. Of course this aspect of Diego Garcia was never made public, but was well known amongst those in the US military, government and commercial sectors that were given access to such information. President Trump may or may not have known this at the time he agreed to the UK plan in 2025; however, it is very likely he was aware of it by February 2026 when he overturned his support for it. 

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References 

Trump Targets Indian Ocean; Wants Diego Garcia Base for US Troops, Slams UK-Mauritius Chagos Islands, Times of India, 20 January 2026, YouTube, duration: 8.13 minutes. 

US Senator John Kennedy Absolutely Excoriates UK PM Keir Starmer For Chagos Islands Plan, Forbes Breaking News, 3 February 2026, YouTube, duration: 21.14 minutes. 

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Last updated: 6 March 2026

Michael Organ, Australia