Trump says he can do business with Burnham but calls Chagos deal 'terrible'

President Donald Trump said he can do business with UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham after their first in-person meeting, but sharply criticized the UK's proposed Chagos Islands deal as "terrible." Trump praised Burnham as "a natural businessperson" and said UK-US relations are "more up now" under his leadership, following bilateral talks on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. The US president reiterated his opposition to the agreement, which would cede sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius and have the UK pay an average of £101m ($136m) per year to lease back the strategically important Diego Garcia military base. The deal was paused indefinitely in April after Trump withdrew his support, and Trump suggested Burnham would review it, with the prime minister replying "Yep." Reform UK leader Nigel Farage declared "The Chagos deal is dead," while Burnham had spoken to Mauritian counterpart Navin Ramgoolam ahead of the trip, saying the UK was "determined to secure the long-term operation of the base."