In new flip, Trump attacks U.K. on base deal as U.S. mulls Iran attack

President Donald Trump, shifting his tone yet again, warned Britain on Wednesday (February 18, 2026) not to “give away” a key Indian Ocean base, saying it would be vital if the United States attacks Iran.

Mr. Trump, who is considering strikes on the Islamic republic, lashed out hours after the State Department offered the latest U.S. support to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s deal to return the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.

Under the agreement, Britain would instead pay to lease the strategic joint U.S.-U.K. base at Diego Garcia 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,” Mr. Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

“This land should not be taken away from the U.K. 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 U.K., but they have to remain strong in the face of Wokeism, and other problems put before them. DO NOT GIVE AWAY DIEGO GARCIA!”

Britain had kept control of the Chagos Islands after Mauritius gained independence in the 1960s from British colonisation.

Britain evicted thousands of people, who have since mounted legal challenges for compensation.

Mr. Trump said the claims by people from the Chagos Islands were “fictitious in nature.”

In response to Mr. Trump, a spokesperson for Britain’s Foreign Office said that the deal secured the U.K.-U.S. base and was “crucial to the security of the U.K. and our key allies.”

“The agreement we have reached is the only way to guarantee the long-term future of this vital military base,” the spokesperson said.

Eye on Iran

Mr. Trump’s latest flip appears to come as he considers an attack on Iran, where authorities last month killed thousands of people in a crackdown on mass demonstrations.

Mr. Trump’s envoys on Tuesday (February 17, 2026) held new negotiations with Iran’s top diplomat in Geneva and pressed for major concessions, starting with Tehran’s nuclear program.

The United States joined Israel in its bombing campaign of Iran in June, striking nuclear facilities as its ally carried out a much broader offensive.

“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,” Mr. Trump said, referring to a U,S, air base in England.

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

Just Tuesday (February 17, 2026), the State Department announced three days of talks next week with Mauritius on maintaining the Diego Garcia 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 Mr. Trump and “should be taken as the policy of the Trump administration.”

When Mr. Starmer’s Labour government first reached the deal last year, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio quickly hailed it as “historic.”

Mr. Trump then called it an “act of GREAT STUPIDITY” that showed why the United States needed to conquer Greenland from ally Denmark.

Mr. Trump later said he accepted the deal after speaking to Mr. Starmer, a position on which he now appears to have backtracked.

Published – February 19, 2026 04:32 am IST