Report: Britain Refused Washington's Use of Diego Garcia and Fairford Bases to Strike Iran

SadaNews - Britain did not allow the United States to use either the Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean or the Royal Air Force base in Fairford to launch a potential attack on Iran. This was reported by "The Times" on Friday, which noted that Prime Minister Keir Starmer rejected a request from President Donald Trump to use British bases for a strike on Iran, adding that such an action would be contrary to international law. The British newspaper mentioned that Trump had plans to use the base on Diego Garcia, which is jointly used with Britain, as well as the Fairford base, during a potential attack on Iran, but he criticized Britain following Starmer's refusal. The report noted that Trump spoke in a post on the "Truth Social" platform on February 18 about the issue of transferring the Chagos Archipelago, which includes Diego Garcia, to the country of Mauritius, which is at the core of the dispute. On Wednesday, Trump said that if Iran decided not to reach an agreement, Washington might have to use the military base in Diego Garcia and Fairford Airport in Britain to "counter a potential attack from a highly dangerous regime." The two sides had previously discussed the issue of the Diego Garcia base located in the Chagos Archipelago, which Britain plans to return to Mauritius, and is used jointly with the United States. Mauritius is an island in the Indian Ocean, with no land borders with any other country, and its closest neighbors are Madagascar, Comoros, Seychelles, and French Réunion. It is worth noting that in 1965, Britain separated Diego Garcia from the rest of the archipelago and handed it over to the United States, which established a joint military base there. Britain removed about two thousand island inhabitants to establish the base that Washington has used in its military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. In 2019, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted a resolution calling on Britain to terminate its administration of the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean and hand them over to Mauritius. In May 2025, Mauritius and Britain signed an agreement to transfer the islands, and the use of the Diego Garcia base by Britain was organized under a lease agreement for 99 years. Under the agreement, Britain was granted the right to extend the use of the base for an additional 40 years after the expiration of the 99-year period. The agreement has not yet entered into force due to the incomplete ratification procedures in the parliaments of both countries. Trump had criticized the agreement, commenting that "our NATO ally, Britain, is planning without any justification to give the vital US Diego Garcia island to Mauritius." Trump described the move as "weakness," adding that China and Russia are watching this development. He stated that "Britain's abandonment of such important land is a major folly, and another link in a long chain of justifications related to national security that explain why the acquisition of Greenland is necessary." On Thursday, Trump announced that the course of the operation regarding Iran would become clear within 10 days, adding: "A fruitful agreement with Iran should be reached, otherwise bad things will happen." American media reports via "CNN" and "CBS News" on Thursday indicated that the US military is ready to attack Iran by the end of the current week, though Trump has not made a decision yet. This comes at a time when the United States has strengthened its military presence in the region in recent weeks, sending additional naval vessels, despite ongoing negotiations with Tehran amid threats of an attack on Iran. The United States demands that Iran halt all its uranium enrichment activities and relocate enriched uranium out of the country. Washington seeks to bring Iran's missile program and its support for armed organizations in the region to the negotiating table, but Tehran has repeatedly asserted that it will not negotiate on any issues other than its nuclear program. Tehran sees that Washington and Israel are fabricating pretexts for intervention and regime change, and vows to respond to any attack, even if limited, while insisting on lifting the Western economic sanctions imposed on it in exchange for restricting its nuclear program.