The Chagos Treaty – A Maritime Security Perspective through the Lens of History, Geo-Politics, and its Implications for India

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By – Tushar Mishra

Abstract

This blog gives a broad impression of the recently concluded Chagos Treaty’s historical, geopolitical, and maritime security aspects. It looks into the Treaty’s insinuations for India’s strategic autonomy and maritime security interests. By means of well thought-out offsetting, India can use to good advantage this Treaty to strengthen its sway in the Indian Ocean and sustain its role as a regional stabilizer.

Introduction

The latest accord between the United Kingdom and Mauritius over the independence of the Chagos Archipelago celebrates a transformative moment in international affairs coupled with maritime geo-politics. Seeing that the UK formally hand overs the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, together with the advantageously important Diego Garcia, to Mauritius, this attempt focusses on enduring colonial legacies and possibly alters the power undercurrents in the Indian Ocean. For India, a strategic player in the region, the settlement’s upshots will have an effect on its maritime security setting, confound its geo-political coalitions, and potentially rework its tactical autonomy in the Indian Ocean. This blog deals with the Chagos Treaty by looking into its historical background, the changing geo-political landscape, and the maritime security insinuations for India, for the most part regardless of increasing Chinese sway in the Indian Ocean Region (or, ‘IOR’).

Historical Context of the Chagos Archipelago

The Chagos Archipelago has a controversial colonial history. In 1965, three years before Mauritius gained independence, the UK held control over the Chagos Islands, giving rise to the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) to work for Cold War interests by letting out Diego Garcia to the United States of America. This severance of the Chagos Islands from Mauritius was encountered with legal fights and finger-pointing of colonial misuse. Conception of a US military base on Diego Garcia proved to be an occasion for the unwished-for removal of the native Chagossian inhabitants, a determination that has sparked-off prolonged protests and legal contests. Compelling calls to decolonise the Chagos Archipelago have received from the UK by international organizations like the International Court of Justice, United Nations Organization, as well as the African Union. In the year 2019, the ICJ made a ruling in which it declared that the continued occupation of Chagos was unlawful by the UK and required that sovereignty be transferred to Mauritius. This decision, coupled with increasing diplomatic pressure, saw the UK decide to divest sovereignty concurrently gaining a 99-year lease of Diego Garcia to the USA – a treaty to retain strategic control much like maintaining international decolonization norms.

Geo-Political Implications

  • Strategic Recalibration in the Indian Ocean Region

This is against the backdrop of a very important maritime route that connects all three continents-Asia, Africa, and Europe. There are reported frays in power between regional and global actors in the Indian Ocean Region. Diego Garcia military base is a long-standing source of the USA as it caters for the country’s logistical support in military exercises and drills across the regions of the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa. US-UK presence at Diego Garcia has been a counterweight to local fluctuations and, freshly, Chinese imperialist machinations in the Indian Ocean. China’s military footprint is expanding-its base in Djibouti and growing influence across Africa and South Asia have only boosted security anxieties for the USA and its allies, India being one of them. The Chagos Treaty brings a new dynamic to this picture. Given that Mauritius is a signatory to an inevitable US presence, the new government might face pressures from China, since it shares trade and investment links with Beijing. A change of heart by Mauritius would open more elbow room for China in the IOR, thus threatening the operational security of Diego Garcia and regional balance of power.

  • India’s Strategic Autonomy and Alliances

Even though the Chagos Treaty opens new possibilities for India, it throws up some questions on this score. India had always been on the sovereignty side of Mauritius over Chagos – it is in its camp, supporting decolonization over stabilizing relations with the Global South. But, this raises trenchant questions on the subject of its strategic autonomy when Diego Garcia is under US control. At the same time, further away from appropriate India-US cooperation may balance the Chinese influence, yet more reliance on Diego Garcia is likely to spawn an alliance with the Western powers, which can spoil the engagement of India with regional powers like Iran and Russia. On the other hand, the tradition of India’s approach to the Indian Ocean has highlighted nonalignment and regional leadership principles that may be sacrificed by unconcealed teamwork with the US on Diego Garcia. Harmonizing this dynamic will be important as India follows to remain an independent actor within an ever more polarized world landscape.

Maritime Security Implications for India

  • Potential Access to Diego Garcia

One of the critical features of Chagos is that India can gain access to facilities of Diego Garcia, an asset that enhances maritime super vision and defense capabilities in the IOR. Indian naval operations and defense cooperation with US will further benefit from receiving closer logistical support from Diego Garcia, which will make it stronger in keeping an eye on Chinese activities and performing anti-piracy operations.

Nonetheless, Indian military planners are careful about using Diego Garcia, given its association with colonial injustices. At one time, India desisted from directly engaging with Diego Garcia, to a certain extent thanks to its commitment to the Non-Aligned Movement and its endorsement for the Chagossian cause. Entry to Diego Garcia now would have need of balancing national security objectives with the potential hostile response from local and regional actors who perceive India as a neutral regional power.

  • Countering Chinese Naval Expansion

China’s “String of Pearls” strategy, having to do with port investments in the Indian Ocean at Gwadar (Pakistan), Hambantota (Sri Lanka), and probable additional bases, highlights its increasing sway in the region. The IOR’s strategic routes, which transmit 80% of China’s oil imports, are vital to Beijing, making Diego Garcia a major target for close watch. Diego Garcia’s nearness to key shipping lanes and its advanced intelligence-gathering infrastructure could help India observe these maritime corridors more efficiently. By cooperating with each other with the US and Mauritius, India could put off Chinese naval expansion even as upholding regional stability. This group-effort aligns with India’s importance as a security provider in the Indian Ocean Region, making real its undertaking to watch over most important trade routes from the incidents and occurrences of piracy, trafficking, and other security threats.

  • Improved Regional Security Collaboration with Mauritius

The Chagos Treaty unlocks the doors for India to widen security collaboration with Mauritius, attending to collective concerns, such as unlawful fishing, drug trafficking, and maritime domain awareness (or, ‘MDA’). For Mauritius, whose Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is ever more targeted by illegal fishing – time and again linked to Chinese vessels – Indian assistance in keeping a close watch on its waters could be especially worthwhile. More to the point, India’s co-operation in building up Mauritius’ naval competence could counterpoise China’s sway in the Western Indian Ocean region, furthering stability without calling for India to bring about a direct military being there in Chagos. Collaborative designs on MDA and environmental protection, as conjured up in the treaty, would invigorate India’s regional influence alongside firming up Mauritius’ security competencies.

India’s Strategic Calculus: Navigating Complex Alliances

  • Relations with the United States

The Diego Garcia base, a very important possession for the USA in the Indo-Pacific region, foregrounds the strategic alignment concerning Washington and New Delhi. The Quad alliance, which consists of the USA, India, Japan, and Australia, strives for making certain a ‘free and open Indo-Pacific’ as well as rise to Chinese maritime assertiveness. India’s way in to Diego Garcia’s logistical and intelligence infrastructure would augment its role within the Quad, affording operational flexibility and a stage for well thought-out patrols.

  • Harmonising Associations with the Non-Western Allies

India’s greater than before association with the USA on Diego Garcia could, be that as it may, strain its dealings with the nations like Iran, Russia, also other countries in the Middle Eastern region. Iran, a key economic and strategic partner for India, might think about the closer India-US military assistance as a hazard, most of all making an allowance for the military base’s role in US manoeuvres in the Middle East. In the same way, Russia, an old defence partner, could pin-point India’s access to Diego Garcia as a swing headed for Western alignment, having an impact on the two-sided engagements. India should in view of that warily navigate its relationships, making sure that enhanced access to Diego Garcia does not chip away at its ability to engage with non-Western allies. Looking after a stable diplomatic stance will be sine qua non to maintaining India’s sway and independence in the region.

Conclusion

The impact of the Chagos Treaty, on the Indian Ocean is extensive as it reshapes the scene and introduces complexities in regional security dynamics for India to navigate carefully with both opportunity and challenge in mind. Having closer logistical backing from Diego Garcia could greatly enhance Indias security strength. Bolster India’s position as a key security player, in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). However this partnership needs to be approached to safeguard India’s independence and avoid alienating other regional allies. 

As India continues to define its place in a changing landscape the Chagos Treaty serves as evidence of its capability to balance security needs, with principles of non-alignment. By enhancing collaboration on security issues protecting vital interests and promoting stability India can leverage the treaty’s impact to bolster its standing as a sovereign and influential player in the Indian Ocean region while also addressing the strategic complexities arising from China’s expanding influence, in the area. 

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