The UK on Thursday announced a “historic” agreement that will see Britain hand over sovereignty of the remote Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean to Mauritius while it retains the joint UK-US military base on Diego Garcia.
The British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) status of the disputed archipelago, made up of around 60 islands, has been in contention for many years and negotiations over its future began under the previous Conservative Party government in 2022. Under the agreement announced this week, the tropical atoll of Diego Garcia – which the West says plays a crucial role in the region’s stability and international security – will remain under UK and US jurisdiction for at least the next 99 years.
“This government inherited a situation where the long-term, secure operation of the Diego Garcia military base was under threat, with contested sovereignty and ongoing legal challenges,” said UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy.
“Today’s agreement secures this vital military base for the future. It will strengthen our role in safeguarding global security, shut down any possibility of the Indian Ocean being used as a dangerous illegal migration route to the UK, as well as guaranteeing our long-term relationship with Mauritius, a close Commonwealth partner,” he said.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said the pact struck with Mauritius demonstrates Britain’s commitment to safeguarding global security and averting threats to peace and prosperity in the Indian Ocean and wider Indo-Pacific.
It will see Mauritius assume sovereignty over the islands, with the UK authorised to exercise the sovereign rights of Mauritius on Diego Garcia. For the first time in more than 50 years, the status of the base will be undisputed and legally secure, following a political agreement between the UK and Mauritius, the FCDO claimed.
“The agreement underpins the UK’s steadfast duty to keep the country safe, with the operation of the military base unchanged, i