The Chagos Archipelago

Published on 12 Oct 2025

• Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Mauritius, India affirmed its support for the island country’s claim over the Chagos archipelago.

• Chagos has long been the subject of a dispute between Mauritius and the UK, which held on to these islands for decades after granting independence to Mauritius in 1968.

• It was only last year that London officially recognised Mauritius’ sovereign rights over all of Chagos, although it retained control over Diego Garcia.

• Diego Garcia is the largest island in the archipelago and home to a strategically important joint UK-US military base.

• The Chagos archipelago comprises more than 60 low-lying islands in the Indian Ocean roughly 1,600 km to the northeast of the main island of Mauritius.

• Chagos has a land area of only 56.1 sq km, with Diego Garcia alone spread over 32.5 sq km — which is about the same as the land area of Lakshadweep.

• The Great Chagos Bank, spread over 12,642 sq km, is the world’s largest atoll structure.

• The Islands closest inhabited neighbour Addu, the southernmost Maldivian atoll, lies 500 km away.

https://indianexpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Diego-Garcia-and-Chagos.jpg

Keywords:

Chagos Archipelago Mauritius UK Diego Garcia military base Indian ocean The Great Chagos Bank Addu Atoll corals places in news