After more than half a century of dispute, the United Kingdom reached a “historic agreement” with Mauritius on Thursday October 3 on the sovereignty of the Chagos archipelago in the Indian Ocean, which allows it to keep its joint military base with the United States on the main island of Diego Garcia. The agreement, reached after two years of negotiations that began after an urgent UN resolution, was immediately welcomed by US President Joe Biden.
This base – strategically positioned between Europe, India and China – plays “an essential role in national, regional and global security”, he stressed, welcoming the fact that the agreement will “guarantee its proper functioning over the next century”.
In a joint statement by the British and Mauritian governments, London recognizes the sovereignty of Mauritius over the Chagos Islands. But “for an initial period of 99 years”, the United Kingdom will be “authorised to exercise sovereign rights” over Diego Garcia, “to ensure the continued exploitation of the base”.
“October 3, 2024. An unforgettable day. A day to commemorate the full sovereignty of the Republic of Mauritius over its entire territory”, rejoiced on X the Mauritian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Maneesh Gobin.
The Chagos archipelago, made up of some fifty isolated paradise islands in the middle of the Indian Ocean, is at the heart of a territorial dispute of nearly 60 years. It has been administered since 1965 by London, which has set up a joint military base with the United States on the main island, Diego Garcia.
Mauritius, which gained independence in 1968, claimed the Chagos territory and demanded the return of the archipelago to its fold. Negotiations on the archipelago’s sovereignty began in late 2022 with the Conservative government then in power in the United Kingdom.