Diego Garcia has been administered by the United Kingdom as part of the British Indian Ocean Territory since 1965, following its separation from Mauritius, though the legality of that separation has been widely contested. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the island’s civilian population was removed to allow for the development of military facilities operated by the United States and the United Kingdom, leaving no permanent civilian residents. A treaty signed in May 2025 provides for the transfer of sovereignty to Mauritius, but it had not entered into force as of early 2026.
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