(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
President Donald Trump urged British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to abort a lease deal for the island of Diego Garcia, saying it would be a “blight” on the United Kingdom and make it harder for the U.S. to leverage its military base and “eradicate a potential attack” from Iran.
The president made his plea in a Truth Social post on Wednesday.
“They have to remain strong in the face of Wokeism, and other problems put before them. DO NOT GIVE AWAY DIEGO GARCIA!” Trump ended his message by saying.
Trump said he was not a fan of the UK entering a “tenuous, at best” 99-year deal to lease a joint U.S.-U.K. military base on the island, located in the middle of the Indian Ocean; the deal is part of a larger agreement in which Britain is giving control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
“Our relationship with the United Kingdom is a strong and powerful one, and it has been for many years, but prime minister Starmer is losing control of this important Island by claims of entities never known of before,” Trump posted. “In our opinion, they are fictitious in nature.”
He went on to argue the lease made it tougher to use the key military base, which Trump said was vital to protecting both America and Britain from a potential Iranian attack.
Trump continued:
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 — An attack that would potentially be made on the United Kingdom, as well as other friendly Countries.
Ironically, Trump’s Truth Social post comes a day after the U.S. Department of State said it “supports” the lease deal, “but wants to conclude a bilateral agreement with the U.K. that guarantees the continued use” of the joint base on Diego Garcia, Politico reported. It was also made soon after Axios reported a senior Trump official said there is a “90% chance” of military action against Iran within the next “few weeks.”
The post ‘DO NOT GIVE AWAY DIEGO’: Trump Urges UK to Resist ‘Wokeism’ and Controversial Island Lease first appeared on Mediaite.