Farage suggests trading Chagos Islands to Trump for Falkland silence

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 14 Oct, 07:32 · Archive

Nigel Farage said he would cede the Chagos Islands to the United States in exchange for Donald Trump's silence on the Falkland Islands if he were Prime Minister.

Speaking on the Benny Show podcast, Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, said he would offer the Chagos Islands to the United States if he became Prime Minister. He told the podcast: 'I'd have gone in and said, Right, you know what, mate? Chagos, it's yours. Diego Garcia, in perpetuity, the most strategic American military base in the world.' He continued that he would ask Donald Trump in return to stop discussing the Falkland Islands, framing it as a trade between businessmen.

Kemi Badenoch, leader of the Conservative Party, criticised Farage's comments as 'loose talk from a man who wants to be responsible for Britain's national security'. She said: 'It is mad for someone who wants to be prime minister to say we should give away one piece of British territory just to stop an American president talking about another.' Badenoch emphasised that both the Chagos Islands and the Falklands are British and will remain so regardless of American statements.

The White House responded to Badenoch's criticism by accusing her of 'peddling fake news and undermining the Anglo-American relationship'. A Reform spokesman later clarified that Farage was specifically discussing American use of Diego Garcia military base in perpetuity, not the Chagos Islands as a whole. Labour has proposed transferring sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius while leasing Diego Garcia to the United States and Britain for 99 years, though this arrangement is currently suspended after Trump's opposition.

How it is being reported

• Kemi Badenoch Slammed By White House Over Farage Chagos Islands RowTory leader Kemi Badenoch. Kemi Badenoch has been condemned by the White House after she hit out at Nigel Farage over comments he made about the Chagos Islands on a US podcast. The Reform UK leader appeared to suggest he would hand the British overseas territory to America in return for Donald Trump remaining silent about the future of the Falkland Islands . Badenoch said that was “loose talk from a man who wants to be responsible for Britain’s national security”. But in an extraordinary intervention, a White House official accused the Tory leader of “peddling fake news and undermining the…HuffPost UK · 14 Oct, 07:17
• Nigel Farage says he would do shock Chagos Islands deal with Donald Trump if he were PMNigel Farage has said he would do a deal involving the Chagos Islands with Donald Trump if he were Prime Minister. The Reform UK leader has been criticised by Kemi Badenoch for his comments, made on the Benny Show with Benny Johnson. According to The Telegraph, Mr Farage told the podcast that, if he were Prime Minister: "I’d have gone in and said, 'Right, you know what, mate? Chagos, it’s yours.' Diego Garcia, in perpetuity, the most strategic American military base in the world, which it is. "Outside mainline America, Diego is the most important thing America has for nuclear subs, for…GB News · 13 Oct, 23:12

In this story: Nigel Farage · Donald Trump · Kemi Badenoch · Reform UK · Chagos Islands · Falkland Islands · Diego Garcia

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