In humiliating blow for Britain, UN asks international court to advise on sovereignty of Chagos Islands
Britain has overseen the region since 1814 and in 1965 detached the Chagos islands from Mauritius, a colony that gained independence three years later, to create the British Indian Ocean Territory
In a humiliating blow to Britain, the United Nations voted to seek an opinion from the top UN court on Mauritius’ claim that Britain illegally maintains sovereignty over the Chagos Islands, including Diego Garcia, where the United States has a major military base in the Indian Ocean.
The Indian Ocean archipelago has been at the centre of a decades-long dispute over Britain’s decision to separate it from Mauritius in 1965 and set up a joint military base with the US on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands.
The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution presented by Mauritius and backed by African countries asking the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague to offer an opinion on the island chain’s fate.
The resolution requested the ICJ to advise whether the process of decolonising Mauritius was lawfully completed, following the separation of the islands.
It also asked the court to advise on the “consequences under international law ... arising from the continued administration by (Britain) of the Chagos Archipelago, including with respect to the inability of Mauritius to implement a programme for the resettlement on the Chagos Archipelago of its nationals, in particular those of Chagossian origin.”
