It means Britain will give up sovereignty of the Indian Ocean territory and lease back the vital Diego Garcia military base – at a cost of £101m a year.
In a news conference, the prime minister said the base is of the “utmost significance to Britain, from deploying aircraft to defeat terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan, to anticipating threats in the Red Sea and the Indo-Pacific”.
He said the base was under threat because of Mauritius’s legal claim on the Chagos Islands, which has been recognised by multiple international courts.
Sir Keir said the UK was at risk of losing the base if it didn’t cede the territory and “no responsible government would let that happen”.
“We will never gamble with national security,” he said.
He said there was “no alternative” and that the deal agreed today was inherited from the Tories – who had agreed in principle to give up sovereignty.
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