Diego Garcia is now legally owned by Mauritius , while the United Kingdom and United States operate a long‑term military base there under lease arrangements.

Current ownership

  • In 2025, the UK signed an agreement to transfer sovereignty over the entire Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia, to Mauritius.
  • Under this deal, Diego Garcia and a surrounding maritime buffer zone are immediately leased back so the joint UK–US military base can continue operating for 99 years, with options to extend.

Who controls the base?

  • The island hosts a large, strategic military facility jointly used by the US and UK, which remains under their operational control despite Mauritian sovereignty.
  • The agreement bars other powers from using the surrounding islands without UK consent, keeping Western military control central even after the sovereignty handover.

Why this is in the news

  • The deal followed decades of disputes and international pressure, including a 2019 International Court of Justice advisory opinion saying the UK should end its administration of the Chagos Islands.
  • In early 2026, President Donald Trump publicly criticized the transfer to Mauritius as a strategic mistake, which has fueled fresh debate and forum discussion about “who owns Diego Garcia” and what it means for Western power in the Indian Ocean.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.