President Mohamed Muizzu has said the Maldives holds a strong claim over the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, citing historical, geographical and legal grounds, in an interview with British media outlet Express.co.uk.
In the interview, President Muizzu said the Maldives is geographically closer to the Chagos Islands and has historical connections to the archipelago, known in the Maldives as Foalhavahi. He stated that the Maldivian government has conveyed its position to the British government through official correspondence, while noting that details of these discussions cannot be made public at this stage.
“The Maldives has historical connections to the Chagos Islands – known to us as Foalhavahi – which lie south of Maldivian waters. These connections are based on documental evidence, and we believe gives the Maldives a greater claim than any other country,” he said.
The remarks echo statements made by President Muizzu during his Republic Day address in 2024, where he also said the Maldives has documentary evidence supporting its claim over the territory. He has also criticised a previous administration for what he described as relinquishing maritime territory without public consultation.
The Chagos Islands have been at the centre of a long-running dispute between the United Kingdom and Mauritius. Mauritius has claimed sovereignty over the archipelago since gaining independence in 1968, while the UK had earlier separated Chagos from Mauritius and administered it as part of the British Indian Ocean Territory. The UK later leased Diego Garcia, the largest island in the group, to the United States for a military base, following the removal of its inhabitants.
The Maldives became involved in the matter as its exclusive economic zone overlaps with that of the Chagos Islands. International legal bodies have issued rulings related to the dispute, including a 2019 advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice, which stated that the UK’s administration of Chagos was unlawful. In 2021, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea also ruled that the British claim over the archipelago was illegal. The UK did not accept either decision.
In November 2022, the UK agreed in principle to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. This was followed by a deal signed in 2025, allowing Britain to retain control of the US-UK military base on Diego Garcia under a 99-year lease.
Separately, a maritime boundary dispute between the Maldives and Mauritius was decided by ITLOS in 2023. The tribunal applied the equidistance method to divide a contested maritime area of 95,563 square kilometres, awarding 7,232 square kilometres to the Maldives and 45,331 square kilometres to Mauritius. The remaining area was allocated outside the overlapping claims.
Appealing the ITLOS decision was an electoral pledge of the current administration. A committee has since been established to undertake appeal-related work, chaired by former Attorney General Mohamed Anil.
In his interview, President Muizzu said that despite differences over the Chagos issue, relations between the Maldives and the UK remain close, particularly in areas such as tourism and people-to-people ties.
