On Wednesday 11 June at 10.00am, the House of
Lords International Relations and Defence Committee will hear
evidence on the implications of the transfer of sovereignty of
the Chagos Archipelago to Mauritius. The Committee will hear from
three panels of witnesses and discuss the legal drivers, regional
security and environmental implications, as well as implications
for UK/US defence and the security of base operations on Diego
Garcia.
The session will be available to watch live or on demand
at Parliament
TV or attend in person in Committee Room 2, Palace
of Westminster.
Giving evidence will be:
10:00am
-
Professor Philippe Sands KC,
Professor of the Public Understanding of Law, University
College, London; and
-
Professor Richard Ekins KC
(Hon), Professor of Law and Constitutional
Government, St John's College, University of Oxford.
10:45am
-
Darshana Baruah, Shangri-La Dialogue Senior
Fellow for Indo-Pacific Defence and Strategy, IISS–Asia;
-
Cleo Paskal, Non-Resident Senior Fellow for
the Indo-Pacific at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies;
and
-
Dr Bryan Wilson, Scientific Advisor, Chagos
Conservation Trust.
11:30am
-
Professor Alessio Patalano, Professor of War
& Strategy in East Asia at the Department of War Studies
and Co-Director of the Centre for Grand Strategy, King's
College, London;
-
Zack Cooper, Senior Fellow, US strategy in
Asia, American Enterprise Institute; and
-
Dr Thomas Withington, Associate Fellow and
expert in electronic warfare and air defence, Royal United
Services Institute.
Questions will include:
- How do you assess the Government's claim that UK security
interests would be jeopardised in the absence of an agreement
with Mauritius on the sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago? Was
a treaty necessary, or could the UK have continued to resist
legal pressure rather than agreeing to transfer sovereignty?
- How would any disputes between the UK and the US be managed?
If Mauritius were to challenge the UK's interpretation of the
agreement or breach the treaty, what legal remedies would be
available to the UK (and the US) under both the treaty and
international law?
- What impact does the treaty have on the rights of the
Chagossian community?
- How critical is the UK–US base on Diego Garcia to UK defence
interests and broader Western security strategy in the
Indo-Pacific, particularly in light of rising tensions with China
and increasing competition in the Indian Ocean?
- How credible are concerns regarding Mauritius' economic and
political alignment with China, and what strategic implications
might this have for Western defence interests in the Indian Ocean
region?
- Do you foresee any operational or strategic risks arising
from the rights and guarantees set out in Annex I of the treaty,
particularly in relation to the long-term security and
flexibility of UK–US activities on Diego Garcia?
