Kamal Ghorui
TOI Correspondent from Washington: Flames from US President Donald Trump’s inflammatory approach to Europe over Greenland is now spreading to the Indian Ocean. In a sudden pivot on Monday, the MAGA boss questioned the United Kingdom returning to Mauritius the island of Diego Garcia, which hosts a US military base. India has backed the UK-Mauritius deal. “Shockingly, our ‘brilliant’ Nato Ally, the United Kingdom, is currently planning to give away the Island of Diego Garcia, the site of a vital US Military Base, to Mauritius, and to do so FOR NO REASON WHATSOEVER. There is no doubt that China and Russia have noticed this act of total weakness,” Trump said in a Truth Social post, linking it to his quest for Greenland.“The UK giving away extremely important land is an act of GREAT STUPIDITY, and is another in a very long line of National Security reasons why Greenland has to be acquired. Denmark and its European Allies have to DO THE RIGHT THING,” he asserted, claiming that “These are International Powers only recognize STRENGTH, which is why the United States of America, under my leadership, is now, after only one year, respected like never before.”Trump did not mention India, which has deep security interests in the Indian Ocean vis-a-vis China and has played a quiet role in encouraging the UK – which has owned and administered Diego Garcia as part of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) since 1965 – to transfer sovereignty back to Mauritius, the rightful owner of the island. The UK and Mauritius officially signed a treaty last May to end decades of dispute, recognizing Mauritius as the sovereign owner of the entire Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia. The treaty is currently in the ratification stage in the British parliament, effectively beginning the “decolonization” process that Mauritius, backed by India, has long fought for.For New Delhi, there is also some historical baggage vis-a-vis Washington. The US decision to establish a full-fledged base in Diego Garcia was taken by the Nixon Administration, which deployed a naval task force into the Bay of Bengal to intimidate India during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War. India stared down the US and went on to free Bangladesh from the clutches of what was then East Pakistan, ahead of the arrival of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, at the time the largest and most powerful warship in the world. The realization that USS Enterprise had to sail all the way from the Gulf of Tonkin (Vietnam) to reach Bay of Bengal convinced US strategists to accelerate the development of Diego Garcia into a major strategic hub.Since then, India has been vocal about the “militarization” of the Indian Ocean, which it regards as its sphere of influence, although lately its wariness is geared towards China, given New Delhi’s improved defense ties with the US, particularly in the naval realm. India is providing Mauritius with a $680 million economic and security package to help it manage its newly regained territory, including developing the “Chagos Marine Protected Area.” The two sides have also reached agreements for India to establish a satellite station and conduct hydrographic surveys in the Chagos Archipelago.Trump’s sudden pivot and dressing down of the UK now threatens to torpedo these agreements even though – as in the case of Greenland – the US has total access to Diego Garcia will continue to maintain its base under a 99-year lease Mauritius has signed with UK, reportedly for an annual fee of $ 100 million. But like with Greenland, it now appears that Trump would prefer to own it — rather than have Mauritius loan it.
