UK Puts Handover of the Strategic Chagos Islands on Hold

 

Plans for the United Kingdom to surrender sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, known as the British Indian Ocean Territory in return for a leaseback arrangement allowing for the continued operation of the United States’ Naval Support Facility on Diego Garcia, appear to have been put on hold.

The Times of London has reported that Prime Minister Kier Starmer is now concerned about political backlash from his own MPs over the annual cost of the deal at a time when welfare payments are being cut. There is also growing condemnation of the deal for transferring the citizenship of the Chagos Islanders from the United Kingdom to Mauritius without any form of consultation - when Britain went to war with Argentina to defend the rights of Falkland Islanders to choose if they wished to remain British or not.

A major weakness of the proposed deal is that once sovereignty is transferred, there will be no going back, and Mauritius could then choose to strengthen its alliance with China and allow Chinese encroachment over other islands in the Chagos Archipelago. China has track record (well-established in the South China Sea) of building up deserted islands for “civilian” purposes – then turning them into military installations.

Mauritius and China have a Free Trade Agreement, and the Chinese community in Mauritius has two members in Parliament. Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam has a much closer relationship with China than his predecessor, who started the negotiations with the United Kingdom. At a meeting on May 14, the new Chinese Ambassador Dr Huang Shifang pledged to strengthen Mauritius-Chinese relations, particularly in light of the “strategic advantages” which Mauritius enjoys. He added that there would be “broad prospects for future collaboration.” The new Mauritian government has hinted that it wishes to revive the Jin Fei and Yihai industrial zones, a joint project which collapsed when China did not deliver the new investment promised in the deal.

Meanwhile, the Diego Garcia airfield remains busy. On May 18, four B-52s were visible on the South Apron, together with four F-15 fighters to provide local defense in the light of Iranian threats. The F-15 fighter presence was confirmed by Cdr. Matthew Comer, Chief of Media and Current Operations, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. The emerging local defense requirement reinforces the need for forward radar sites on the Chagos Islands to the north.