Prime Minister Keir Starmer is entering a 100-year lease that would transfer control or rights over Diego Garcia to entities claiming title to the island.
Evidence and Verdict
For
Reuters reports that under a 2025 agreement Britain will transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius while retaining control of the Diego Garcia base under a 99-year lease. Multiple outlets (BBC, NPR, AP, CNN) describe the UK plan as handing sovereignty to Mauritius while arranging a long lease-back (commonly reported as 99 years or “at least 99 years”) to preserve operation of the U.K./U.S. base on Diego Garcia.
Against
The lease commonly reported in these sources is 99 years (Reuters, NPR, AP, BBC/CNN coverage), not precisely a 100-year lease as the claim states. The deal transfers sovereignty/title to Mauritius while the UK (and the U.S. as base operator) retain long-term lease/operational rights for the military base — it does not transfer control or rights over Diego Garcia to other "entities claiming title" beyond Mauritius, nor does it hand operational control to claimants opposed to the base.
Verdict
The claim mixes accurate facts (a long lease-back of the Diego Garcia base and transfer of sovereignty to Mauritius) with inaccurate or misleading elements (calling it a 100-year lease rather than the widely reported 99 years and implying the lease transfers control/rights to other "entities claiming title"). Therefore the statement is MIXED.
Sources
UK signs £101m-a-year deal to hand over Chagos Islands - BBC
UK signs £101m-a-year deal to hand over Chagos Islands - BBC - Feb 19, 2026
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Ramgoolam added that the UK would no longer be able to unilaterally act on a clause in the deal where the lease could be extended for 40 years.
Open source