The U.S. military base on Diego Garcia, a strategic outpost in the Indian Ocean, has just been secured for the next century through a controversial $4.3 billion deal that transfers sovereignty of the Chagos Islands from Britain to Mauritius while maintaining American military presence in one of the world’s most critical security locations.
Key Takeaways
- Britain and Mauritius have signed a landmark agreement transferring sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius while ensuring the continued operation of the vital U.S. military base on Diego Garcia through a 99-year lease with a potential 40-year extension.
- The UK will pay Mauritius £101 million annually (approximately $3.4 billion total) to maintain operational control of the strategically crucial Diego Garcia base, which supports counterterrorism operations and provides military projection in the Indo-Pacific region.
- The deal includes security provisions preventing foreign adversaries from establishing a presence near the base, including a 24 nautical mile buffer zone and ban on foreign security forces on outer islands.
- Approximately 10,000 displaced Chagossians who were forcibly removed from the islands between 1967-1973 remain largely excluded from negotiations, with only a £40 million trust fund established for their communities.
- The agreement has received support from the U.S. and other Five Eyes intelligence partners but faces criticism from conservatives who view it as surrendering British territory.
A Strategic Asset in an Increasingly Volatile World
The Diego Garcia military base represents one of America’s most valuable yet least known strategic assets in projecting power across the Indo-Pacific region. Located in the heart of the Indian Ocean, this remote coral atoll serves as an essential hub for U.S. naval and air operations, allowing rapid deployment to potential hotspots from the Middle East to Southeast Asia. With growing Chinese influence in the region and ongoing terrorism concerns, Diego Garcia’s importance has only increased in recent years, functioning as what American officials have described as “an all but indispensable platform” for military operations.
The new sovereignty arrangement comes after years of international pressure on Britain to relinquish control of the Chagos archipelago, which it had maintained as the British Indian Ocean Territory since 1965. Both the United Nations General Assembly and the International Court of Justice had previously ruled that Britain should return the islands to Mauritius. Under the new agreement, Mauritius gains sovereignty over the archipelago while Britain retains operational control of Diego Garcia through a 99-year lease with an option for an additional 40 years, ensuring American military presence well into the next century.
🇬🇧UK TO TRANSFER CHAGOS ISLANDS TO MAURITIUS IN CONTROVERSIAL DEAL BACKED BY TRUMP
The UK will hand over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius while securing long-term access to the Diego Garcia military base in exchange for multibillion-pound payments.
Though… https://t.co/xQPLFyATMi pic.twitter.com/rYvspaP6tu
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 22, 2025
Security Guarantees and Regional Stability
The agreement includes crucial security provisions designed to prevent adversaries like China from establishing footholds near this vital military installation. A 24 nautical mile buffer zone will surround Diego Garcia, and foreign security forces are explicitly banned from operating on the outer islands. These measures reflect growing concerns about Chinese maritime expansion in the Indian Ocean region, which could potentially threaten Western security interests if left unchecked. The deal has received strong support from all Five Eyes intelligence partners (the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand) as well as India.
“As the world becomes more dangerous, our military base on Diego Garcia becomes more important. Today’s Treaty secures full operational control, strengthens our UK-US defence partnership and keeps British people safe at home for the next 99 years and beyond,” said Defence Secretary John Healey MP.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has expressed strong support for the agreement, recognizing Diego Garcia’s critical role in America’s global security posture. This base has proven essential for operations against terrorist groups like the Islamic State and provides a platform for responding to regional crises. Military experts note that without this agreement, international legal proceedings could have eventually rendered the base inoperable, creating a dangerous security vacuum in a strategically vital region where Chinese influence continues to grow.
The Human Cost: Displaced Chagossians Left Behind
While government officials celebrate the diplomatic and military aspects of this agreement, the deal largely ignores the plight of approximately 10,000 displaced Chagossians and their descendants. These island inhabitants were forcibly removed between 1967 and 1973 to make way for the military base, a dark chapter that Human Rights Watch has described as potentially constituting crimes against humanity. The current agreement establishes a modest £40 million trust fund for Chagossian communities but offers little clarity about their right to return to ancestral lands.
“I’m beyond horrified and angry,” said one Chagossian campaigner.
Many Chagossians now live in poverty in Britain, Mauritius, and the Seychelles, having received minimal compensation for their displacement. Their exclusion from the negotiation process has drawn criticism from human rights advocates who argue that their interests have been sacrificed for geopolitical and military considerations. While Mauritian officials celebrate what Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam calls “completing the process of total decolonization,” displaced islanders remain skeptical that their rights and concerns will ever be adequately addressed.
Financial Terms and Political Implications
The financial aspects of this deal are substantial, with Britain committing to pay Mauritius £101 million annually to lease back Diego Garcia, amounting to approximately £3.4 billion over the lease term. Additional funds will go toward Mauritian development projects and the Chagossian trust fund. The agreement still requires approval from Britain’s Parliament, where it faces opposition from conservative lawmakers who view it as surrendering British territory unnecessarily. They argue that the UK had valid legal claims to the territory and that the financial burden is excessive.
“By agreeing to this deal now on our terms, we’re securing strong protections, including from malign influence, that will allow the base to operate well into the next century, helping to keep us safe for generations to come,” said Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Despite this opposition, the deal represents a pragmatic approach to maintaining Western military presence in a critical region while acknowledging the reality of international legal pressures. The agreement allows Britain to retain full operational control of the base, including management of the electromagnetic spectrum and satellite operations, ensuring that Diego Garcia can continue functioning as an essential platform for projecting American and allied military power throughout the Indian Ocean region for generations to come.
