Mauritius's deputy prime minister has hinted that negotiations with the UK over the future of the Chagos Islands are being held up over the amount of money involved. Under the terms of the original agreement,

Sir Keir Starmer's deal with the Mauritian government for the Chagos Islands may be about to hit the buffers after the country's Deputy Prime Minister suggested that the UK may need to pay more to lease the territory.

The agreement to give away islands after 200 years of British rule was one of Sir Keir Starmer’s first major foreign policy decisions

Mauritius's new government is holding up a landmark sovereignty deal with the UK over the Chagos Islands due to financial disagreements. Deputy Prime Minister Paul Bérenger told his constituents on Sunday that negotiations were stalling over monetary terms.

The new Mauritius government wants better terms over the control of a strategically important UK-US military base in the Indian Ocean, a move that threatens to upend one of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s early diplomatic achievements.