The White House is considering a plan to buy the Chagos Islands from Mauritius, which could potentially derail British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s plan to transfer sovereignty over the territory.

According to the British newspaper The Telegraph, US officials have prepared a proposal to bypass the UK and strike their own deal to establish control over Diego Garcia — a strategically important UK-US military base — amid uncertainty over its future.

This option is among several scenarios developed by Donald Trump’s administration as part of a document proposing alternatives to the prime minister’s plan, which предусматривает передачу островов Маврикию — стране, которую в Вашингтоне считают близкой к Китаю и Ирану.

As one American official familiar with the discussions told The Telegraph, the White House is in regular talks with Downing Street about the future of Diego Garcia.

Although purchasing the islands is not the White House’s main option, the idea was discussed directly with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who brought it to the president’s attention, sources said.

The war with Iran and the growth of China’s naval capabilities have intensified calls to preserve a global network of strategic military bases.

Diego Garcia’s strategic location makes it possible to keep Iran within reach and conduct round-the-clock long-range bombing missions, including strikes on Tehran using B-2 Spirit strategic bombers, the article notes.

Accordingly, senior Trump administration officials fear that transferring control over the waters to Mauritius, which is oriented toward China, could create opportunities for maritime espionage.

In recent months, officials have emphasized the importance of the Chagos Islands, noting the presence of highly classified facilities there.

The price of the Chagos Islands has not yet been discussed. Originally, the UK planned to transfer the islands to Mauritius and then pay about £35 billion ($46.7 billion) for a 99-year lease of the military base.

To establish control over the islands, Washington would first have to allow Sir Keir’s plan to go ahead and then negotiate with Mauritius after the transfer of sovereignty.

The US president initially supported Starmer’s plan to transfer the islands but then effectively derailed it after Starmer refused to grant the US the right to use Diego Garcia for strikes on Iran in the early hours of the war.

Labour had planned to pass legislation to transfer the islands to Mauritius in 2025, but it cannot be ratified without US consent.

In several public statements this year, the US president called the deal a sign of weakness and “great stupidity,” saying that Starmer was “losing control of this important island,” referring to Diego Garcia.

In an interview with The Telegraph on March 2, he said he was “very disappointed” in the prime minister, who had limited his ability to use the island for strikes on Iran.

Since then, he has repeatedly criticized Starmer, saying he is “not Winston Churchill” and is responsible for weakening the special relationship between the two countries.

The UK also depends on the US when it comes to formally amending the exchange of letters from the 1960s and 1970s, which form the legal basis for the joint use of the base.

Mauritius has repeatedly challenged British sovereignty over the Chagos Islands in international courts, and ministers expect that the UN’s International Court of Justice may soon issue a binding ruling on the transfer of the islands.