Burnham Attacks Russian Disinformation as Trump Forces Fresh Review of Chagos Deal

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has used his first address to the United Nations General Assembly to accuse Russia of carrying out what he described as an industrial scale campaign of disinformation, while announcing plans for a new centre to tackle hostile information attacks. Burnham made the announcement during his visit to New York, shortly after holding his first face to face meeting with US President Donald Trump.

The proposed National Centre for Information Defence will be tasked with detecting, attributing and disrupting hostile state information attacks. Burnham said the UK had evidence that Russia attempted to interfere in the 2019 general election and claimed the Kremlin spends around £1.3 billion every year manipulating information. He also warned that developments in artificial intelligence could make the threat from disinformation and cyberattacks even greater.

Burnham said the UK and US are also developing an AI defence partnership, while Britain plans to make artificial intelligence a major focus of its presidency of the G20 in 2027. He argued that Britain could play a role in bringing major powers together to develop a common framework for AI, pointing to the UK’s relationships with the United States, European Union, China and emerging powers such as India and Brazil.

The prime minister also addressed the war in Ukraine, the climate crisis and the situation involving Israel, Gaza and the West Bank. On the Middle East, Burnham defended the UK’s decision to sanction Israeli goods produced in the occupied West Bank. He said the decision followed an Israeli government move to expand settlements, which he argued could make a two-state solution more difficult.

He also condemned the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023, while maintaining that the attacks did not justify all actions taken by the Israeli government in Gaza and the West Bank. Before his UN speech, Burnham held his first in person meeting with Trump. The two leaders discussed a range of issues, including trade, immigration, the Iran war, the Falkland Islands and the case of Hong Kong businessman Jimmy Lai.

Trump spoke positively about the relationship between Britain and the United States under Burnham, saying relations were better now than they had been under the previous British prime minister. Burnham also described the meeting as encouraging and said the pair had established a good connection.

However, the meeting exposed a significant disagreement over the future of the Chagos Islands. Trump again criticised the proposed agreement under which the UK would transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius while retaining control of the strategically important Diego Garcia military base through a long-term lease.

Trump described the deal as “terrible” and said he did not support it, arguing that the islands were strategically important. The proposed arrangement would allow the UK and US to continue operating their military base on Diego Garcia under a 99 year lease, reportedly costing as much as £30 billion. Following Trump’s opposition, UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting confirmed that the government would review the agreement.

The Chagos issue has therefore become one of the major challenges emerging from Burnham’s first meeting with Trump, particularly because the UK considers the Diego Garcia base strategically important to its defence relationship with the United States.

Burnham’s visit to New York has also included meetings with European and international leaders, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Their discussions included European security, Russian threats, disinformation and AI safety.