The government of Mauritius has issued a statement after once again rejecting Labour's Chagos deal, saying their commitment to reach an agreement remains "unshaken".
The Cabinet of Mauritius met this morning under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam to be informed of the developments on the deal.
The Attorney General travelled to London to discuss the sovereignty treaty over the Chagos Archipelago but did not reach a conclusion.
He will now travel to London again this evening in order to continue discussions with the UK Government.
A Downing Street spokesman denied that the UK was trying to finalise the deal before Trump’s inauguration
GettyIn the highlights of the cabinet meeting, the PM’s office wrote: “Cabinet has met this morning to be informed of developments following the recent visit of the Attorney General to London in relation to the proposed treaty on the sovereignty of Mauritius over the Chagos Archipelago.”
“The attorney General will travel again this evening in order to continue with the discussions in London. Upon his return, Cabinet will then be apprised of the situation.”
“The commitment and resolve of Mauritius to reach an agreement and end this long battle for the sovereignty of Mauritius over the Chagos Archipelago remains unshaken.”
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones has said that the UK is still negotiating with Mauritius.
It comes as Downing Street indicated that the UK will not sign off a deal to relinquish control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius until Donald Trump’s new US administration is installed.
“We will only agree to a deal that is in the UK’s best interests and protect our national security,” the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said when asked about reports the Mauritian government is seeking further talks.
He added: “It is obviously now right that the new US administration has the chance to consider this and discuss this once they are in office.”
Asked if this meant the UK would not sign a deal before Tuesday – when Trump will have officially begun his presidency – the spokesman replied: “You can take from what I have just said about that – the new US administration.”
Speaking to LBC, Jones said the UK was mid-negotiation with the Mauritian government.
“Listeners will probably know, I suspect, that this is an island that is an important military base for the UK, important to our national security. It’s right, therefore, that we secure our presence and operations on that island,” he said.
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones has said that the UK is still negotiating with Mauritius
PA“But what I can’t tell you now is the kind of details, because they are mid-negotiation. That will get presented in the normal way to Parliament, like any other treaty, in due course.”
A Downing Street spokesman denied that the UK was trying to finalise the deal before Trump’s inauguration, saying it was a “long-term deal” and the UK would not agree to a deal that is “not on our terms”.
It was previously reported that Trump was seeking to veto the deal, amid fears of the threat of China.
No10 has repeatedly refused to draw on the cost of this deal to the British taxpayer, however, it has been reported the offer stands at around £90million per year.
