The administration of US president Donald Trump is considering buying the Chagos Islands from Mauritius, as reported by The Telegraph and YLE.
The Chagos Islands are an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, and it consists of seven atolls. The islands belong to Britain, but British prime minister Keir Starmer has planned to hand Chagos Islands over to Mauritius. And Mauritius is an ally of China and Iran.
The US officials have drawn up a proposal to bypass Britain and make their own agreement on the administration of Diego Garcia, which is the largest atoll in the archipelago. Diego Garcia has a strategically important military base of the United States in the Indian Ocean. The Trump administration fears that handing over control of the archipelago to Mauritius would open possibilities to maritime espionage.
The White House has held regular discussions with the British prime minister's office, according to The Telegraph.