By Vice Admiral Biswajit Dasgupta (Retd)
Mauritius and the United Kingdom, on Sep 3, 2024, agreed to put a treaty into effect, through which the Chagos Archipelago’s sovereignty will no longer remain disputed. This was a long-standing demand of the people of Mauritius who saw it as an unfinished agenda of decolonisation. The British controlled the Chagos Islands from 1814 and in 1965, it detached the Chagos Archipelago from its colony, Mauritius to create what came to be known as the British Indian ocean Territory (BIOT).
Reflective of Britain’s global strategic mindset, it entered into a deal with the United States of America in 1967 for leasing the island of Diego Garcia for building a military base. Mauritius became independent in 1968. In the years that followed, Britain evicted over 2000 islanders from Diego Garcia to Mauritius and Seychelles to make way for the US military base. The demand of Chagossians to return to their homeland was another reason for friction between Mauritius and the UK. The return of the archipelago to Mauritius will hopefully resolve much of the heartbreak.
The treaty also includes guaranteeing the operation of the US-UK Diego Garcia military base for the next 99 years. This means that the military activity of the USA and UK from Diego Garcia will continue well into the 22nd century. Military operations from this base will, in all probability, continue to expand, if China’s naval presence in the Indian Ocean Region shows any increasing or threatening trend.
How does this impact Indian Ocean security? Not greatly, for the present but there could be possibilities in the future. First, Mauritius will regain control of the archipelago and would take sovereign decisions on its development, including the return of its original inhabitants. Developmental activities by Mauritius would provide an opportunity to its friends like India to partner in their efforts. India’s ‘neighbourhood first’ policy must factor in Mauritius’ future plans for Chagos.
The geo-strategic location of the Chagos islands, about midway between India and Mauritius, makes India an important stakeholder for its own maritime security. There is a need to find common ground on matters such as maritime surveillance and resource exploitation to further bilateral cooperation. As a result of sovereignty over these islands by Mauritius, it will claim vast sea areas as legitimate maritime zones and its claims before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) for demarcating overlapping claims with the Maldives would also gain strength. India would be well-suited to assist Mauritius in activities within its maritime zones, owing to both geographical proximity and very trusted bilateral relations.
The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), having defined maritime zones such as territorial waters and exclusive economic zones has set into motion, a race for territorialisation of the oceans. As a result, small island states have become large ocean states. These island states have very little terrestrial resources and will increasingly depend on the oceans for their sustenance. On the other hand, exploitation of ocean resource is both technologically and financially intensive, for which reliable partners are essential. It is for both Mauritius and India to realise this and move forward with each other’s sensitivities clearly in focus.
On the military front, it is the maritime space that is critical in this part of the world. There is potential for future competition or conflict with China, which is well entrenched in several Indian Ocean Region (IOR) countries including island nations, both commercially and militarily. Diego Garcia and the rest of the Chagos would have a deterrent effect on any military design that is inimical to the interests of India and the IOR countries. With the USA, UK and France already present in significant numbers, an Indian partnership grouping with these three friendly countries would prove to be a credible deterrent to any infringement of common maritime interests.
The possibilities arising out of the Chagos islands reverting to Mauritius outweigh the challenges. India must evaluate its implications on the maritime security of the Indian Ocean and formulate future strategies to preserve peace and stability in the Indian Ocean Region.
The author is a former Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Navy’s Eastern Naval Command
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