UK gives up its last colony in Africa

Agrees to cede Chagos Island to Mauritius, to retain Diego Garcia airbase

LONDON:

Britain said on Thursday it would cede sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius in a deal it said secured the future of the UK-US Diego Garcia military base, and which could also pave the way for people displaced decades ago to return home.

The new agreement said that Mauritius would be free to implement a programme of resettlement on the islands other than Diego Garcia, with the terms left for Port Louis to decide.

"We were guided by our conviction to complete the decolonisation of our republic," Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth said in a televised speech.

Critics in Britain said it was a capitulation which played into the hands of China, which has close trade ties with Mauritius, while one group representing displaced Chagos Islanders expressed anger they had been shut out of talks.

British Foreign Minister David Lammy said the deal settled the contested sovereignty of the islands, the last British overseas territory in Africa, while ongoing legal challenges had imperilled the long-term future of the Diego Garcia.

He said the base, whose strategic significance was demonstrated during the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts where it acted as a launch pad for long-range bombers, was now guaranteed for at least 99 years. "Today's agreement ... will strengthen our role in safeguarding global security," Lammy said.

US President Joe Biden welcomed the deal, saying it would secure the effective operation of Diego Garcia, a strategically important airbase in the Indian Ocean, into the next century. He echoed Lammy's sentiment, saying Diego Garcia played "a vital role in national, regional, and global security".

"It enables the United States to support operations that demonstrate our shared commitment to regional stability, provide rapid response to crises, and counter some of the most challenging security threats we face," he said.