UK hands sovereignty of Chagos Islands to Mauritius in a deal to secure US base

Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — The U.K. has agreed to hand sovereignty of the long-contested Chagos Islands, an archipelago of more than 60 islands in the Indian Ocean, to Mauritius, in a deal to secure the future of a strategically important U.K.-U.S. military base at Diego Garcia. In a statement Thursday, the British government said the agreement is strongly supported by international partners including the U.S. As part of the deal, the U.K. will retain sovereignty of Diego Garcia for an initial period of 99 years. Britain’s government said without the deal the secure operation of the military base would be under threat, with contested sovereignty and legal challenges.