Muizzu pitches Trump Chagos deal; US keeps Diego Garcia

Maldives offers the United States that it can continue access to the Diego Garcia naval base if the Chagos Islands transfer from UK to Maldives control, challenging the UK-Mauritius agreement, while President Trump flags national security risks over shifting Indian Ocean geopolitics.

(Image: Gemini AI)

The United States and the United Kingdom disagree over islands in remote locations that host important bases. Meanwhile, the Maldives has offered a deal to U.S President Donald Trump.

Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu said he is open to an arrangement. Under this deal, the U.S could keep its Naval Support Facility at Diego Garcia.

In return, the Maldives would gain control of the Chagos Archipelago, the U.K-held territory in the Indian Ocean. The developments come after U.K plans to transfer Chagos to Mauritius.

Add Zee News as a Preferred Source

The United Kingdom and Mauritius finalised their deal last year, and Trump initially supported it. Now, the U.S president opposes it due to national security concerns. Looking at the recent developments over the UK-Mauritius deal, Malé has assured that the US and UK can still operate bases at Diego Garcia, on of the Island of the Chagos archipelago.

In an interview with Newsweek, Maldives President Muizzu said, “President Trump clearly wants to protect and ensure continued use of Chagos for the US Naval Support Facility at Diego Garcia."

Maldives President Muizzu in his proposal said, Right now, the Chagos Archipelago belongs to Britain. This allows the UK and US to freely use the Diego Garcia base. They operate there under their security and defence agreements with each other and other nations, including the Maldives.

Muizzu told Newsweek that if sovereignty transfers to the Maldives, his government would seek parliament's approval. This follows the Maldives constitution. The goal is to keep the current operations at Diego Garcia unchanged.

Maldives President also gave reasons why President Trump should favor the Maldives over others. He highlighted his country's strong experience in protecting large marine areas across thousands of ocean miles. The Maldives has never overcrowded, overdeveloped, or under-protected its own marine zones. Muizzu promised they would maintain the same high standards if Chagos joins their borders.