Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, wth reference to the UK/Mauritius Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago (CS Mauritius No.1/2025), whether Mauritius can permit (a) vessels, (b) submarines and (c) facilities provided by other countries to be (i) established and (ii) based in the Chagos Archipelago.

The Treaty explicitly grants all rights and authorities that the United Kingdom requires for the long-term, secure and effective operation of the Base. We will retain full control over Diego Garcia with robust provisions to keep adversaries out. These include unrestricted access to and use of the base for the UK and US; a buffer zone around Diego Garcia; a comprehensive mechanism to ensure no activity in the other islands threatens base operations; and a ban on the presence of any foreign security forces.