Trump and Burnham Meet in New York as Chagos Deal Stays Paused
Donald Trump and Andy Burnham met in person for the first time on Tuesday, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. BBC
Asked by the BBC if Burnham was a man he could do business with, Trump said: "Yeah I do, I think he's a natural businessperson, we've had a lot of discussions even before this meeting we've spoken to each other numerous times on the phone." He added: "Yeah, I think so, he gets it, he understands what he has to do."
Burnham told Trump: "You and I have established a good connection in our early discussions and we've taken that further today." The two men discussed trade and immigration during the meeting. Trump said UK-US relations are "more up now" that Burnham is in power.
Chagos took up much of the public exchange. Trump described the UK plan to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius as "terrible". He said the joint UK-US military base on Diego Garcia is "strategically very important", particularly for US operations linked to Iran. He said: "I think the prime minister is going to be looking at [the deal]."
As last reported, the agreement would see the UK cede sovereignty, in other words give up legal ownership, to Mauritius and pay an average of £101m ($136m) a year to lease back the Diego Garcia base and keep using it. In April, the deal was paused indefinitely after Trump withdrew his support. BBC
There had been different messages before that pause. Downing Street said in February that the US had backed the deal to hand over the islands and lease back the base. BBC Keir Starmer said in January that he had discussed the deal with Trump. BBC Under the terms reported in April, Britain would retain control of the Diego Garcia base on a 99-year lease. Reuters
Trump has made a series of public comments on the deal. In January he called it "stupid" and "an act of total weakness". Reuters In May 2025 he said the UK should "not give away Diego Garcia". BBC On 1 September he said the US position on the Falklands is "one of many" under review. BBC
The handover agreement is valued at $4.5 billion, and Britain and Mauritius sought a UNGA breakthrough after Trump's opposition stalled it. Business Insider On 21 September, Reuters reported that Burnham seeks resolution to the dispute over the Diego Garcia base. Reuters
To put that meeting in context, the tone was cordial. The substance is unresolved. That mix will be familiar to anyone who follows the UK-US relationship.
The broader context here is the narrow room for manoeuvre in No 10. Ministers said the leaseback secures the base. Washington now treats the sovereignty concession as the problem. Burnham cannot ratify in practice without US agreement, and he cannot easily walk away without reopening negotiations with Port Louis and absorbing the political cost at home.
Looking at what this means for the weeks ahead, watch the sequencing. Trade and immigration offer both leaders an incentive to show progress. Chagos offers neither a quick win. If Burnham is to look again at the terms, the question for Whitehall is whether any revision can satisfy the Pentagon on long-term access, satisfy Mauritius on sovereignty, and still command a majority in Parliament. Nothing said in New York settled that three-way test.
