Chagos Archipelago sovereignty dispute

Sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago is disputed between Mauritius and the United Kingdom. Mauritius has repeatedly stated that the Chagos Archipelago is part of its territory and that the United Kingdom claim is a violation of United Nations resolutions banning the dismemberment of colonial territories before independence. On 22 May 2019, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a non-binding resolution declaring that the archipelago was part of Mauritius, with 116 countries voted in favor of Mauritius while six opposed it.

The UK government has declared that it has "no doubt" about its sovereignty over the Chagos, yet has also said that the Chagos will be returned to Mauritius once the islands are no longer required for military purposes. Given the absence of any meaningful progress with the UK, Mauritius took up the matter at various legal and political forums.

On 3 November 2022, it was announced that the UK and Mauritius had decided to begin negotiations on sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory, taking into account the recent international legal proceedings.^[1] In December 2023, it was reported that the UK government was planning to discontinue the talks.^[2]

^ Cite error: The named reference guardian-20221103 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Diver, Tony (1 December 2023). "UK drops plans to hand Chagos Islands back to Mauritius". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2 December 2023. Retrieved 4 December 2023.

[guardian-20221103-1] Cite error: The named reference guardian-20221103 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[:0-2] Diver, Tony (1 December 2023). "UK drops plans to hand Chagos Islands back to Mauritius". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2 December 2023. Retrieved 4 December 2023.

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