News: India Welcomes UK’s Decision To Hand Over Chagos Islands To Mauritius. Chagos Archipelago
About Chagos Archipelago
- Location: It is an island group located in the central Indian Ocean, about 1,600 km south of India’s southern tip.
- Key Islands: Includes atolls like Diego Garcia, Peros Banhos, Solomon Islands and Danger Island.
- Climate: Tropical marine climate, with weather moderated by trade winds.
- Disputed Nations: The primary parties involved in the dispute are the U.K. (current administrator) and Mauritius (claimant), with the U.S. involved due to the military base on Diego Garcia.
- Colonial Background: The Chagos Archipelago was claimed by Britain along with Mauritius in 1814. Before Mauritius’ independence in 1968, the U.K. separated the islands in 1965 to create the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT).
- In 2019, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) dismissed the UK’s right to govern the Chagos Islands and called on its government to withdraw from the archipelago.
