· The government of Mauritius is sending a boat to the disputed Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean
· The archipelago is under British rule. But Mauritius is wanting to take back the Island under its rule riding on the back of a decision by the International Court of Justice
· The Mauritian authorities has commissioned a scientific expedition with the aim of mapping the reefs around the archipelago.
The government of Mauritius is sending a boat to the disputed Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean. The archipelago is under the British rule. But Mauritius is wanting to take back the Island under its rule riding on the back of a decision by the International Court of Justice..
The Mauritian authorities has commissioned a scientific expedition with the aim of mapping the reefs around the archipelago. The people involved in the expedition include a group of elderly native inhabitants of the islands forced to leave their homes by the British some half a century ago. The expedition of the elders to the Island from where they were expelled is coming as a sequel to the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling in 2019 that Britain should give up control of the islands. One of the disputed islands, Diego Garcia, is home to an important US military base.
Britain said earlier that Mauritius can take control of the Chagos Islands once the archipelago is no longer needed for security purposes. It is not known what is the present view of Britain. The Indian Ocean region has become a dispute point between the US and China in view of its strategic advantage. China is going an extra mile to win over the Indian Ocean countries.
