In a joint statement issued Thursday by the British and Mauritian governments, the two sides said sovereignty over the Chagos island chain will be transferred to Mauritius, including its largest island, Diego Garcia, which has been home to a highly strategic joint U.S.-British naval base since the 1960s.
Under the agreement, the United States and the U.K. will retain the rights to the base under a 99-year lease, while the thousands of native Chagossians who were controversially removed during its construction and subsequently prevented from returning will remain barred from resettling on Diego Garcia due to security concerns.
However, the remainder of the archipelago's 57 islands comprising what had been known as the British Indian Ocean Territory will be thrown open for settlement under the new jurisdiction of Mauritius. None of those islands are currently inhabited.
The deal marks a turning point in decades of legal disputes over the fate of the displaced Chagossians, whose removal from their homes was condemned by Human Rights Watch last year as a crime against humanity and an example of "appalling colonialism."
Beginning in 1998, the islanders pursued a series of lawsuits against the British government, seeking additional monetary compensation and the right to return to the territory. In 2019 the U.N. General Assembly demanded in a non-binding resolution that the British government end its "colonial administration" of the Chagos Archipelago and that they be returned to Mauritius.
The U.K., under the Conservative Party government of former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, launched multiple rounds of negotiations in 2022 in the face of growing international pressure to surrender its final African colony.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said Thursday the agreement succeeds in securing the country's vital national interests.
"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," he said.
"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 U.K., as well as guaranteeing our long-term relationship with Mauritius, a close Commonwealth partner," he added.
U.S. President Joe Biden similarly praised the deal, calling it "a clear demonstration that through diplomacy and partnership, countries can overcome long-standing historical challenges to reach peaceful and mutually beneficial outcomes.
"This agreement affirms Mauritian sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago, while granting the United Kingdom the authority to exercise the sovereign rights of Mauritius with respect to Diego Garcia," he said.
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