UN Asks International Court of Justice for Advice on Disputed Chagos Islands

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The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on Thursday requesting the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to provide advice on the legal consequences of the separation of the Chagos archipelago from Mauritius in 1965.

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) — The ICJ is requested to provide an advisory opinion on whether "the process of decolonization of Mauritius [was] lawfully completed when Mauritius was granted independence in 1968, following the separation of the Chagos archipelago from Mauritius."

Moreover, the General Assembly is seeking the ICJ to clarify the consequences under international law that arise from the "continued administration by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland of the Chagos Archipelago."

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The draft resolution was supported in a 94-15 vote with 65 abstentions. Most European Union countries, including Germany and France, abstained as well as Russia.

Speaking to the General Assembly before the vote, UK Ambassador to the United Nations Matthew Rycroft recalled that "the General Assembly has not concerned itself with this matter for decades… today’s debate has been called for other reasons."

Rycroft then explained the ICJ request is "an attempt by the Government of Mauritius to circumvent a vital principle: the principle that a state is not obliged to have its bilateral disputes submitted for judicial settlement without its consent," adding that the United Kingdom does not and would not give that consent.

The Chagos archipelago is a group of seven atolls comprising more than 60 individual tropical islands in the Indian Ocean and is officially part of the British Indian Ocean Territory.

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The Chagos had been part of Mauritius since the 18th century. However, in 1965, before Mauritius gained its independence, the United Kingdom split the Chagos from the territory of Mauritius to form the British Indian Ocean Territory.

In 1960s, several thousands of native Chagossians were forcibly deported from the island of Diego Garcia as the United Kingdom secretly leased the archipelago and detached it from Mauritius to make way for US ships and aircraft.

Islanders say the reserve, if created, would effectively ban them from returning.

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