[134][135], The United States military facilities on Diego Garcia have been known informally as Camp Justice[136][137][138] and, after renaming in July 2006, as Camp Thunder Cove. United States Mauritius is the legitimate sovereign over the Chagos Archipelago, including the island of Diego Garcia, which hosts an important US military base in the Indo-Pacific region. The Status and Location of the Military Installations of the Member States of the European Union and Their Potential Role for the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP). [97], All precipitation falls as rain, characterised by air mass-type showers. [96], Also, several man-made freshwater ponds resulted from excavations made during construction of the airfield and road on the western half of the atoll rim. In addition, much of the lagoon waters are protected wetlands as a designated Ramsar site, and large parts of the island are nature preserves. [129], British Forces British Indian Ocean Territories (BFBIOT) is the official name for the British Armed Forces deployment at the Permanent Joint Operating Base (PJOB) on Diego Garcia, in the British Indian Ocean Territory. [28] Following the conclusion of hostilities, the station was closed on 30 April 1946. Sea surface temperatures are in the range of 80–84 °F (27–29 °C) year-round. In: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (, CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (. Diego Garcia, part of the British Indian Ocean Territory and the largest of the islands in the Chagos Archipelago. During August 2010 it was composed of the following: Five of these vessels carry supplies for the US Marine Corps sufficient to support a Marine Air-Ground Task Force for 30 days: USNS Button, USNS Kocak, USNS Lopez, USNS Stockham, and USNS Fisher. [6], The atoll is located 3,535 km (2,197 mi) east of Tanzania's coast, 1,796 km (1,116 mi) south-southwest of the southern tip of India (at Kanyakumari), and 4,723 km (2,935 mi) west-northwest of the west coast of Australia (at Cape Range National Park, Western Australia). Its argument is that it was forced to hand over Diego Garcia and other Chagos islands to the British six decades ago as the price of its independence. One of the Chagos Islands - Diego Garcia - is home to a US military base Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth has labelled the British and Americans "hypocrites" and "champions of … January is the wettest month with 353 mm (13.9 in) of mean monthly precipitation, and August the driest month, averaging 106.5 mm (4.19 in) of mean monthly precipitation.[98]. Also, a cacography of the saying Deo Gracias ("Thank God") is eligible for the attribution of the atoll. This fringing seaward reef shelf comprises an area around 35.2 km2 (14 sq mi). [122] The last horse was observed in 1995,[122] and by 2005, just two cats were thought to have survived an island-wide eradication program. The total number of people certified as Ilois by the Mauritian Government's Ilois Trust Fund Board in 1982 was 1,579. Location of Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean. Several months later, Pope Francis renewed pressure on London. VQ9RA Diego Garcia Chagos Archipelago. Maritime Prepositioning Ship Squadron Two, Diego Garcia (Official Site), Naval Support Facility, Diego Garcia (Official Site), A Return from Exile in Sight? [93] When a Ghyben-Herzberg lens is fully formed, its floating nature will push a freshwater head above mean sea level, and if the island is wide enough, the depth of the lens below mean sea level will be 40 times the height of the water table above sea level. It was first discovered by Europeans and named by the Portuguese, settled by the French in the 1790s and transferred to British rule after the Napoleonic Wars. The United States Air Force operates a High Frequency Global Communications System transceiver site located on the south end of the atoll near the GEODSS station. [35], The primary industry throughout the island's colonial period consisted of coconut plantations producing copra and/or coconut oil,[25] until closure of the plantations and relocation of the inhabitants in October 1971. This 3.7 km2 lens holds an estimated 19 million m3 of fresh water and has an average daily recharge from rainfall over 10,000 m3, of which 40% remains in the lens and 60% is lost through evapotranspiration. [35], Regardless of the size of the population, the Chagossians had to be removed from the island before the base could be constructed. TOP STORIES [98], Diego Garcia is at minimum risk from tropical cyclones due to its proximity to the equator where the coriolis parameter required to organise circulation of the upper atmosphere is minimal. Diego Garcia was selected. One of these is centred on the northwest point of the atoll; another is found near the Point Marianne Cemetery on the southeast end of the airfield. Chagos. In: D. R. Stoddart (1971): "Terrestrial fauna of Diego Garcia and other Chagos atolls". [24] On Diego Garcia, the main plantations were located at East Point, the main settlement on the eastern rim of the atoll; Minni Minni, 4.5 km (2.8 mi) north of East Point, and Pointe Marianne, on the western rim, all located on the lagoon side of the atoll rim. Diego Garcia is one of America’s most important – and secretive – overseas assets. Eventually, they were rescued and brought back home. A peak population of 1,142 on all islands was recorded in 1953. The total land area (excluding peripheral reefs) is around 30 km2 (12 sq mi). Large nesting colonies of brown noddies (Anous stolidous), bridled terns (Sterna anaethetus), the lesser noddy (Anous tenuirostris), red-footed booby (Sula sula) and lesser frigate birds (Fregata ariel), exist on Diego Garcia. During October and November, winds again go through a period of light and variable conditions veering to a westerly direction with the onset of summer in the Southern Hemisphere. tropical coral reefs and islands of the territory have a huge abundance of marine and terrestrial species [86], Diego Garcia is frequently subject to earthquakes caused by tectonic plate movement along the Carlsberg Ridge located just to the west of the island. At depth, the lens is globular; near the surface, it generally conforms to the shape of the island. The large AN/AX-16 High Frequency Radio direction finding Circularly Disposed Antenna Array has been demolished, but the four satellite antenna radomes around the site remain as of 2010[update]. [11] In May 2019, the United Nations General Assembly affirmed the decision of the International Court of Justice and demanded that the United Kingdom withdraw its colonial administration from the Islands and cooperate with Mauritius to facilitate the resettlement of Mauritian nationals in the archipelago. [112], Of the 36 native vascular plants on Diego Garcia, 12 are trees, five are shrubs, seven are dicotyledon herbs, three are grasses, four are vines, and five are ferns.[113]. [101][102] A biological survey conducted in early 2005 indicated erosional effects of the tsunami wave on Diego Garcia and other islands of the Chagos Archipelago. Originally colonised by the French, Diego Garcia was ceded, along with the rest of the Chagos Archipelago, to the United Kingdom in the Treaty of Paris (1814) at the conclusion of a portion of the Napoleonic Wars. Uninhabited until the late 18th century, Diego Garcia had no indigenous population. [29], In 1962, the Chagos Agalega Company of the British colony of Seychelles purchased the Société Huilière de Diego et Peros and moved company headquarters to Seychelles. Another three tree species are common, and may be native, but they may also have been introduced by humans: Casuarina equisetifolia, Hibiscus tiliaceus, and Pipturus argenteus. The base’s location near Asia, the Middle East and Africa makes it an irreplaceable cornerstone of America’s ability to project power around the world. [121] Donkeys, which numbered over 400 in 1972, were down to just 20 individuals in 2005. The ruling is not legally binding. [91], A few natural depressions on the atoll rim capture the abundant rainfall to form areas of freshwater wetlands. Another Portuguese expedition with a Spanish explorer of Andalusian origin, Diego García de Moguer,[20] rediscovered the island in 1544 and named it after himself. They say the islands must be returned to Mauritania, a step that would seem to put the future of the Diego Garcia air base into question. US Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia "Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan," September 2005. [49], Fifteen years after the last expulsion, the Chagossians received compensation from the British, totalling $6,000 per person; some Chagossians received nothing. While the U.S. and Britain show no signs of backing down from their positions, the Diego Garcia lease expires in 2026. Click [5] As of August 2018[update], Diego Garcia is the only inhabited island of the BIOT; the population is composed of military personnel and supporting contractors. At Cannon Point,[27] two 6-inch naval guns were installed by a Royal Marines detachment. This tactic was in hope that those that stayed would leave "willingly". The United … [98], Thunderstorm activity is generally noticed during the afternoon and evenings during the summer months (December through March) and when the Intertropical Convergence Zone is in the vicinity of the island. The eventual number of Chagossians numbered around 1,000. There were logistics vessels to service the rapid delivery requirements of the United States Air Force, United States Navy and Defense Logistics Agency. Maintaining the status quo through 2036 may no longer be a viable option for Washington in Diego Garcia. “It is a matter that is deeply rooted in history,” the ambassador said. The deportation of Chagossians from the Chagos Archipelago was the forced expulsion of the inhabitants of the island of Diego Garcia and the other islands of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) by the United Kingdom, at the request of the United States, beginning in 1968 and concluding on 27 April 1973 with the evacuation of Peros Banhos … [110] None of these was endemic, and another survey in 2005 identified just 36 species as "native", meaning arriving without the assistance of humans, and found elsewhere in the world. At the outer edge of the reef shelf, the bottom slopes very steeply into deep water, at some locations dropping to more than 450 m (1,500 ft) within 1 km (0.62 mi) of the shore. [85], The total area of the atoll is about 170 km2 (66 sq mi). All plants, wildlife, and aquatic species are protected to one degree or another. Laws and regulations are promulgated by the commissioner and enforced in the BIOT by Brit rep. Of major concern to the BIOT administration is the relationship with the United States military forces resident on Diego Garcia. F. R. Fosberg & A. These resolutions are formalised by an "Exchange of Notes", or, since 2001, an "Exchange of Letters". A 55-year-old native of the remote Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean, Bancoult heads a group of mostly elderly women who, like him, were expelled shortly after Britain bought the archipelago … It is a militarised atoll just south of the equator in the central Indian Ocean, and the largest of 60 small islands comprising the Chagos Archipelago. Diego Garcia was the site of several naval exercises between the United States and Indian navies held between 2001 and 2004. [139] Formally, the base is known as Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia (the US activity) or Permanent Joint Operating Base (PJOB) Diego Garcia (the UK's term). Between 1814 and 1965 it was a territory of Mauritius. Vertical wells can cause salt upcoming into the lens, and overextraction will reduce freshwater pressure resulting in lateral intrusion by seawater. here for reprint permission. "[156] On the return trip to Singapore, it carried recyclable metals.[157]. In February 2019, the International Court of Justice offered an advisory opinion that Britain’s decolonization of Mauritius was not completed lawfully because of the continued claims over the Chagos Archipelago. “For any country to be able to maintain a colonial system in this century is, I think, totally unacceptable. Diego Garcia (7°19'S, 72°25'E) is an atoll located in the heart of the Indian Ocean, some 1,000 miles (1,600 km) south of India's southern coast. We would like the U.K. to talk both to the U.S. and to Mauritius, and I think together the three countries should be able to come to a solution that takes into account the needs and interest of each one of us.”. [5] Many were deported to Mauritius and the Seychelles, following which the United States built a large naval and military base, which has been in continuous operation since then. It may be the case that "Don Garcia" was named after Garcia de Noronha, although no evidence exists to support this. Charles D. Hunt "Hydrogeology of Diego Garcia". Although no birds are endemic, internationally important seabird colonies exist. This allows twin-engine commercial aircraft (such as the Airbus A330, Boeing 767 or Boeing 777) to make theoretical nonstop flights between city pairs such as Perth and Dubai (9,013.61 km or 5,600.80 mi), Hong Kong and Johannesburg (10,658 km or 6,623 mi) or Singapore and São Paulo (15,985.41 km or 9,932.87 mi), all while maintaining a suitable diversion airport within 180 minutes' flying time with one engine inoperable.[154]. On the heels of the International Court of Justice opinion, British officials echoed American arguments that the future of the Diego Garcia military facility cannot be compromised. The commissioner is assisted by an administrator and small staff, and is based in London and is resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. In February 1942, the mission was to protect the small Royal Navy base and Royal Air Force station located on the island from Japanese attack. - Several endemic fish and aquatic invertebrates are present, though. The atoll shelters the ships of the United States Marine Pre-positioning Squadron Two. In addition, much of the lagoon waters are protected wetlands as a designated Ramsar site, and large parts of the island are nature preserves. [142] In recent years, relations between India and the United States have improved dramatically. [82], In 2004, the UK applied for, and received, Ramsar site wetlands conservation status for the lagoon and other waters of Diego Garcia. [9][10], In February 2019, the International Court of Justice in The Hague ruled that the United Kingdom must transfer the islands to Mauritius as they were not legally separated from the latter in 1965. From June through September, the influence of the Southeast trades is felt, with speeds of 10–15 knots. All plants, wildlife, and aquatic species are protected to one degree or another. “This joint facility plays a critical role in maintaining regional and international peace and security. A summary of the diplomatic cable is as follows:[80]. [30] However, the plantations, both under their previous private ownership and under government administration, proved consistently unprofitable due to the introduction of new oils and lubricants in the international marketplace, and the establishment of vast coconut plantations in the East Indies and the Philippines. In 1778, the French Governor of Mauritius granted Monsieur Dupuit de la Faye the island of Diego Garcia, and evidence exists of temporary French visits to collect coconuts and fish. Neither party gave notice to terminate and the agreement remains in force until 2036". During April and May, winds are light and variable, ultimately backing to an east-southeasterly direction. [78] On 21 February 2008, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband admitted that two United States extraordinary rendition flights refuelled on Diego Garcia in 2002, and was "very sorry" that earlier denials were having to be corrected. This equipment was used during the Persian Gulf War, when the squadron transported equipment to Saudi Arabia. Although some recreational fishing for consumption is permitted, all other food is shipped in by sea or air. Because of the protections provided the species on this atoll, and the isolation of the east rim of the atoll, the species is recorded in greater densities there than anywhere else in its range (339 crabs/ha). [108], In 1967, Stoddart described the land area of Diego Garcia as having a littoral hedge of Scaevola taccada, while inland, Cocos nucifera (coconut) was the most dominant tree, covering most of the island. Diego Garcia, the largest of the Chagos islands, was then leased by Britain to the United States, for use as a military base. Hawksbills have been observed nesting during June and July, and from November to March. [124], The island hosts introduced bird species from many regions, including cattle egrets (Bubulcus ibis), Indian barred ground dove, also called the zebra dove (Geopelia striata), turtle dove (Nesoenas picturata), Indian mynah (Acridotheres tristis), Madagascar fody (Foudia madagascariensis), and chickens (Gallus gallus).[125]. Examples of ships are MV Buffalo Soldier, MV Green Ridge, pre-position tanker USNS Henry J. Kaiser, and tanker USNS Potomac (T-AO-181). He said that the BIOT's former inhabitants would find it difficult, if not impossible, to pursue their claim for resettlement on the islands if the entire Chagos Archipelago were a marine reserve. According to Barber, this was the only way to ensure security for a foreign base. In addition, near-shore coral reefs and an algal platform may have dissipated much of the waves' impact. Typical of coral atolls, it has a maximum elevation on some dunes on the ocean side of the rim of 9 m (30 ft) above mean low water. Prior to setting up a military base, the United States government was informed by the British government—which owned the island—that Diego Garcia had a population of hundreds. Garcia de Moguer died the same year on the return trip to Portugal in the Indian Ocean, off the South African coast. The misnomer "Diego" could have been made unwittingly by the British ever since, as they copied the Portuguese maps. First, the island nation of Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (which is coterminous with the BIOT), including Diego Garcia. [citation needed], Diego Garcia may be identified as an ETOPS (Extended Range Twin Engine Operations) emergency landing site (en route alternate) for flight planning purposes of commercial airliners. here for reprint permission, ‘Wipe people out’: Republicans blast Big Tech’s bid to ‘erase’ Trump, supporters, Day of reckoning looms for Capitol Police after Congress stormed by protesters. In 1968, the first tactics were implemented to decrease the population of Diego Garcia. Lau, "Fresh Water Supply System Developed on Diego Garcia", The Naval Civil Engineer, Winter 1985. Arabs, who reached Lakshadweep and Maldives around 900 CE, may have visited the Chagos. [25] Diego Garcia and the Chagos Archipelago were administered by the colonial government on the island of Mauritius until 1965, when the UK purchased them from the self-governing colony of Mauritius for £3 million, and declared them to be a separate British Overseas Territory. The coral reef surrounding the seaward side of the atoll is generally broad, flat, and shallow around 1 m (3.3 ft) below mean sea level in most locations and varying from 100 to 200 m (330 to 660 ft) in width. NP1002 forms the island's civil administration. Its only inhabitants were European overseers who managed the coconut plantations for their absentee landowners and contract workers mostly of African, Indian, and Malay ancestry, known as Chagossians, who had lived and worked on the plantations for several generations. “To us, it is a matter of incomplete decolonization,” Jagdish Dharamchand Koonjul, Mauritius’ permanent representative to the United Nations, said last week at a panel discussion hosted by the Center for the National Interest. [83], Diego Garcia is the largest land mass in the Chagos Archipelago (which includes Peros Banhos, the Salomon Islands, the Three Brothers, the Egmont Islands, and the Great Chagos Bank), being an atoll occupying approximately 174 square kilometres (67 sq mi), of which 27.19 square kilometres (10 sq mi) is dry land. The surface currents of the Indian Ocean also have a monsoonal regimen associated with the Asian Monsoonal wind regimen. Diego Garcia became a colony of the UK after the Napoleonic Wars as part of the Treaty of Paris (1814), and from 1814 to 1965 it was administered from Mauritius. Pelosi sets timetable for likely Trump impeachment, North Korea issues threat to U.S. as message to Biden, Armed and Dangerous: best new concealed carry handguns, Israeli intel expert: Virus likely ‘unnatural’, Doctor: “Doing This Every Morning Can Snap Back Sagging Skin (No Creams Needed)”, Study: 50% of new COVID-19 infections transmitted from patients with no symptoms. Both Middle Island and Anniversary Island are part of the Spur Reef complex. Chagos Conservation Trust – a non-political charity whose aims are to promote conservation, scientific and historical research, and to advance education concerning the archipelago; Sure Diego Garcia - telecommunications company, Diego Garcia; Diego Garcia Online - information for Diego Garcia population "British Indian Ocean Territory". [131] Diego Garcia is strategically located, offering access to East Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. The 12 tree species are: Barringtonia asiatica (fish-poison tree), Calophyllum inophyllum (Alexandrian laurel), Cocos nucifera, Cordia subcordata, Guettarda speciosa, Intsia bijuga, Hernandia sonora, Morinda citrifolia, Neisosperma oppositifolium,[114] Pisonia grandis, Terminalia catappa, and Heliotropium foertherianum. [31], In April 1966, the British government bought the entire assets of the Chagos Agalega Company in the BIOT for £600,000 and administered them as a government enterprise while awaiting United States funding of the proposed facilities, with an interim objective of paying for the administrative expenses of the new territory. The United Kingdom separated the islands from Mauritius, a former British colony, three years before Mauritius gained its independence in 1968. [73] In October 2007, the Foreign Affairs Select Committee of the British Parliament announced that it would launch an investigation of continued allegations of a prison camp on Diego Garcia, which it claimed were twice confirmed by comments made by retired United States Army General Barry McCaffrey. These fill from rainfall and from extending into the Ghyben-Herzberg lenses found on this island. The shallow reef shelf surrounding the island on the ocean side offers no ocean-side anchorage. An island called "Don Garcia" appears on the Theatrum Orbis Terrarum of Abraham Ortelius (Antwerp 1570), together with "Dos Compagnos", slightly to the north. The total bird list for the Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia, consists of 91 species, with large breeding populations of 16 species. ... Mauritius says it was forced to trade the small archipelago in the Indian Ocean in 1965 for independence. …Seychelles colony, along with the Chagos Archipelago, formerly part of the Mauritius colony. [22] Following the departure of the British, the French colony of Mauritius began marooning lepers on Diego Garcia,[22] and in 1793, the French established a coconut plantation using slave labour, which also exported cordage made from coconut fibre, and sea cucumbers, known as a delicacy in the Orient.[23]. [3] In 1964, only 3 of a population of 963 were unemployed. This detachment provides base telephone communications, base network services (Local Network Services Center), pier connectivity services, and an AN/GSC-39C SHF satellite terminal, operates the Hydroacoustic Data Acquisition System, and performs on-site maintenance for the remotely operated Air Force HF-GCS terminal. The Chagos Archipelago, which was claimed by the United Kingdom as the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) in 1965 lies about 1,770km east of Mahé (the main island of the Seychelles).It consists of about 60 low-lying coral islands, and covers some 640,000 sq km of ocean. The atoll of Diego Garcia is in the Chagos Islands located on a large shoal area known as the Great Chagos Bank. Captain Moresby informs me that in the Chagos archipelago inthis same ocean, the natives, by a horrible process, take the shellfrom the back of the living turtle. If his country regains control of the island, he said, it would offer the U.S. a 99-year lease to maintain its military base and pledge that little would change in practical terms for the Pentagon. The by-then-independent Mauritian government refused to accept the islanders without payment, and in 1974, the UK gave the Mauritian government an additional £650,000 to resettle the islanders. The Government of the BIOT consists of a commissioner appointed by the Queen. The motion was approved by a majority vote with 94 voting for and 15 against. Diego Garcia is the largest of 55 islands that form the Chagos Archipelago within the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) and is known as the "Footprint of Freedom" for its shape, regional location, and strategic importance. Additionally, Diego Garcia was used as a storage section for US cluster bombs as a way of avoiding UK parliamentary oversight. Here Barber designed the strategic island concept, where the US would obtain as many less populated islands as possible for military purposes. Also, 134 species of plants are classified as "weedy" or "naturalised alien species", being those unintentionally introduced by man, or intentionally introduced as ornamentals or crop plants which have now "gone native", including 32 new species recorded since 1995, indicating a very rapid rate of introduction. However, Mauritius objected, stating this was contrary to its legal rights, and on 18 March 2015, the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that the Chagos Marine Protected Area was illegal under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea as Mauritius had legally binding rights to fish in the waters surrounding the Chagos Archipelago, to an eventual return of the Chagos Archipelago, and to the preservation of any minerals or oil discovered in or near the Chagos Archipelago prior to its return. U.K. officials have argued that the issue is a bilateral dispute between Mauritius and Britain and does not warrant international intervention. [3] In April 1967, the BIOT Administration bought out Chagos-Agalega for £600,000, thus becoming the sole property owner in the BIOT. [89], Diego Garcia is the above-water rim of a coral atoll composed of Holocene coral rubble and sand to the depth of about 36 m (118 ft), overlaying Pleistocene limestone deposited at the then-sea level on top of a seamount rising about 1,800 m (5,900 ft) from the floor of the Indian Ocean. [33] No monetary payment was made from the United States to the UK as part of this agreement or any subsequent amendment. Throughout their recorded history, the plantations of the Chagos Archipelago had a population of approximately 1,000 individuals, about two-thirds of whom lived on Diego Garcia. [127], Four reptiles and six cetaceans are endangered and may or may not be found on or around Diego Garcia:[128] Diego Garcia is of sufficient width to minimise tidal fluctuations in the aquifer, and the rainfall (in excess of 102.5 inches/260 cm per year on average)[90] is sufficient in amount and periodicity for the fresh water to form a series of convex, freshwater, Ghyben-Herzberg lenses floating on the heavier salt water in the saturated sediments.[91][92]. The UK retained possession of the Chagos archipelago, which includes the strategic US airbase of Diego Garcia, after Mauritius gained its independence in 1968, effectively paying Mauritius … By 1973, construction of the Naval Communications Station (NAVCOMMSTA) was completed. One 200-to-300 m (220-to-330 yd) stretch of shoreline was found to have been breached by the tsunami wave, representing about 10% of the eastern arm. [153] Remaining essential operations were transferred to a contractor. Other nesting native birds include red-tailed tropicbirds (Phaethon rubricauda), wedge-tailed shearwaters (Puffinus pacificus), Audubon's shearwater (Puffinus iherminierii), black-naped terns (Sterna sumatrana), white (or fairy) terns (Gygis alba), striated herons (Butorides striatus), and white-breasted waterhens (Amaurornis phoenicurus). - In the contemporary era, the atoll continues to play a key role in America's approach to the Indian Ocean as a flexible forward military hub that can facilitate a range of offensive activities. [citation needed], Naval Security Group detachment Diego Garcia was disestablished on 30 September 2005. These studies indicate the vegetation of the island may be changing rapidly. The island was one of 33 emergency landing sites worldwide for the NASA Space Shuttle. There are approximately 40–50 British military personnel posted on Diego Garcia, most of them from Naval Party 1002 (NP1002). 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