NEW DELHI: The United Kingdom on Thursday announced that Britain has agreed to hand over the Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia, situated in the Indian Ocean to Mauritius following a period of at least the next 99 years, under the new agreement.
The UK and Mauritius reached an agreement where for an initial period of 99 years, Britain will be authorised to exercise for Diego Garcia the sovereign rights and authorities of the latter nation required to ensure the continued operation of the base well into the next century.
The UK and Mauritious, in a joint statement, said, “following two years of negotiation, this is a seminal moment in our relationship and a demonstration of our enduring commitment to the peaceful resolution of disputes and the rule of law. Negotiations have been conducted in a constructive and respectful manner, as equal sovereign States, on the basis of international law, and with the intention of resolving all outstanding issues between the United Kingdom and Mauritius concerning the Chagos Archipelago, including those relating to its former inhabitants.”
“The treaty will address wrongs of the past and demonstrate the commitment of both parties to support the welfare of Chagossians. Mauritius will now be free to implement a programme of resettlement on the islands of the Chagos Archipelago, other than Diego Garcia, and the UK will capitalise a new trust fund, as well as separately provide other support, for the benefit of Chagossians,” it added.
In the joint statement both the country said that the new treaty will also herald a new era of economic, security and environmental partnership between our two nations.
To enable this partnership the UK will provide a package of financial support to Mauritius. This will include an indexed annual payment for the duration of the agreement and the establishment of a transformational infrastructure partnership, underpinned by UK grant funding, to deliver strategic projects generating meaningful change for ordinary Mauritians and boosting economic development across the country.
More broadly, the UK and Mauritius will cooperate on environmental protection, maritime security, combating illegal fishing, irregular migration and drug and people trafficking within the Chagos Archipelago, with the shared objective of securing and protecting one of the world’s most important marine environments. This will include the establishment of a Mauritian Marine Protected Area.
The UK and Mauritius also thanked India and the US for assisting them in reaching this political agreement.