The United Kingdom officially ended one of the last bindats of the British Empire: the Chagos Islands archipelago. Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced Thursday, May 22, having signed the transfer to the Republic of Mauritius of this overseas territory, a collection of paradise atolls stretching in the middle of the Indian Ocean. London has however obtained to maintain his presence for ninety-nine years on the largest atoll of the archipelago, Diego Garcia, where the British has housed, since the 1960s, an important American military base.
This emphyteutic lease will cost 101 million sterling pounds (around 120 million euros) per year, but maintaining a presence at Diego Garcia is “Vitual importance” For the safety of the United Kingdom and its allies, said Keir Starmer at a press conference. “” My decision was based on our national security, which is the first duty of a Prime Minister “,, added the Labor Manager.
The Atoll has an airport hosting bombers and supplying planes, a deep water port and large surveillance facilities. Diego Garcia is a logistics center allowing the British and American armies to secure navigation in the Red Sea or to project itself in Africa and South Asia.
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Source: Lemonde