The Chagos Archipelago, a remote island chain in the Indian Ocean, is at the heart of a complex, long-running sovereignty dispute. Mauritius claims the islands,...
The Chagos Archipelago is a group of over 60 tropical islands in the Indian Ocean, currently administered by the UK as the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT). It's geographically located south of the Maldives.
The United Kingdom currently administers the Chagos Archipelago. However, Mauritius asserts its sovereignty over the islands, claiming they were unlawfully detached from its territory by the UK prior to Mauritian independence in 1968.
Diego Garcia, the largest island in the Chagos Archipelago, hosts a strategically vital joint US-UK military base. Its presence is a key factor complicating the sovereignty dispute and the return of the indigenous Chagossians.
The Chagossians are the indigenous people of the Chagos Archipelago who were forcibly removed by the UK in the 1960s and 1970s to allow for the construction of the US military base on Diego Garcia. They continue to campaign for their right of return to their homeland.