The government has temporarily been banned from concluding talks on the Chagos Islands deal by a last-minute injunction by a High Court judge.
At 02:25 BST Mr Justice Goose granted “interim relief” to two Chagossian women who had brought a case against the Foreign Office.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had been expected to attend a virtual signing ceremony with representatives of the Mauritian government on Thursday morning.
The agreement would see the UK hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, but allow the UK and US to continue using an airbase located on the Pacific Ocean archipelago.
A government spokesperson said: “We do not comment on ongoing legal cases. This deal is the right thing to protect the British people and our national security.”
The court will hear the case again at 10:30 on Thursday.
In his order, the judge said: “The defendant shall take no conclusive or legally binding step to conclude its negotiations concerning the possible transfer of the British Indian Ocean Territory, also known as the Chagos Archipelago, to a foreign government or bind itself as to the particular terms of any such transfer.”
“The defendant is to maintain the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom over the British Indian Ocean Territory until further order.”
The order states that the judge granted the injunction “upon consideration of the claimant’s application for interim relief made out of court hours” and “upon reading the defendants’ response”.
The legal action was brought by two Chagossian women, Bernadette Dugasse and Bertrie Pompe.
Earlier this year, their lawyer Michael Polak said: “The government’s attempt to give away the Chagossians’ homeland whilst failing to hold a formal consultation with the Chagossian people is a continuation of their terrible treatment by the authorities in the past.
“They remain the people with the closest connection to the islands, but their needs and wishes are being ignored.”
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