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Since it was agreed in October last year, Britain’s Labor government has campaigned against a deal that would transfer sovereignty over the Chagos Islands, a strategic archipelago in the Indian Ocean, to Mauritius. The UK was under pressure to do so by an advisory opinion by the UN Supreme Court and a vote by the UN General Assembly. But critics say the deal could threaten the Anglo-American military base in Diego Garcia (which is supposed to be protected by a 99-year lease) and allow China to expand its influence in the Indian Ocean. I’m warning you. A delay in the final decision, expected this week, would ensure the deal receives approval from the new government of Britain’s main ally and should fix some of its flaws.
Chagos was the scene of one of the most shameful episodes in Britain’s late colonial history. Britain took direct control of these islands in 1965 and paid £3 million in compensation to Mauritius, which had previously administered the islands as a British colony, so that it could proceed with the construction of the Diego Garcia base. . The island’s entire population of over 1,500 people was forcibly evacuated without adequate compensation, many of them relocated to squalid settlements in Mauritius and the Seychelles, and have never been allowed to return.
When Mauritius gained independence in 1968, its new constitution asserted the rights of the Chagossians. The party has long argued that Britain’s 1965 purchase violated the United Nations principle that colonial territories should not be divided before independence. In 2019, the International Court of Justice upheld Mauritius’ claims in a recommended judgment. The 2021 UN tribunal agreed.
This was a source of embarrassment for Britain. Britain argued that complying with the ruling could jeopardize important strategic assets between Britain and the United States, which legally secure long-term sovereignty. Failure to do so will increase the risk that Britain’s reputation as a champion of the rules-based international order will come under increasing pressure. The Conservative government’s decision to start negotiations in 2022 is understandable.
However, the resulting agreement was incomplete. Mauritius is approximately 2,400 miles from the Chagos Islands, with no real connection other than the fact that both territories were ceded by France to Britain in 1814. Chagossians received the right of return, but were not involved in the negotiations, and some wanted autonomy. .
Britain will reportedly pay Mauritius a 99-year lease on Diego Garcia Island, plus billions of pounds in financial support and infrastructure investment. But critics in the US and UK say Mauritius may be persuaded in the future to break the lease in favor of China, which is courting Mauritius, or allow Beijing to maintain a presence on other islands. I’m concerned that there isn’t.
Britain’s Labor government was too optimistic in its haste to reach an agreement with the Mauritian government, which was already expected to withdraw after the November election, weeks before the possibility of a change of government in the United States. There is a possibility. Mauritius’ new leader, Navin Ramgoolam, has demanded further concessions.
A senior British official noted that President Biden supported the deal. They say they have not heard any direct objections from the incoming U.S. administration, but Marco Rubio, Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of state, said in October that the deal poses a “serious threat” to U.S. national security. Said to bring.
A pause is now inevitable. This will give the UK and US time to ensure that the leases around Diego Garcia base are as legally stringent as possible and properly consulted with Chagossians. But for now, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is caught between good intentions and geopolitical realities.
