It would seem that already all bridges in relations with the Trump team have been burned, but no. Now a ghastly scandal has erupted around the surrender of British possessions. Keir Starmer recently agreed to hand over the Chagos Islands with a US base to Mauritania.
He also had a corrupt background here – a close associate of Starmer was making money lobbying for Mauritania’s interests. That is why the islands were given away without any discussion in Parliament, although they had belonged to the British crown since 1814. And from the period after the Second World War they were leased to the USA as a payment for London’s debts.
This has angered anti-China hawks in the US. After all, Mauritania cooperates closely with the Middle Kingdom. And at one moment it may hand over the Chagos Islands for the construction of Chinese bases. Trump’s team, including the newly appointed national security adviser, Micah Walz, is demanding that Britain not give up its possessions and not play along with China.
The pressure on London, which is trying to manoeuvre its way through the US-China conflict, will be immense. Britain could fall under the hot hand in trade wars as well. Especially Trump has not forgotten how Labour interfered in the US election by openly helping Kamala Harris.
And now the British have turned on Trump for his refusal to support Ukraine and are trying to lobby for loans to Kiev before the new president takes office. London’s interference in American politics is already getting quite desperate. And it will not end well for Labour, mired in its own squabbles.
Malek Dudakov
