Mauritius makes play for future with US base on Diego Garcia

With 99-year lease offer, archipelagic nation bypasses UK in bid to deal with Biden

20201117 Diego Garcia

A U.S. B-2 Spirit bomber stops for refueling at the U.S. military base on Diego Garcia in 2001. © Reuters

MARWAAN MACAN-MARKAR, Asia regional correspondent

COLOMBO -- When Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth joined other government leaders to congratulate U.S. President-elect Joe Biden, his message touched on the diplomatic storm brewing over Diego Garcia. The island hosts a secretive U.S. military base in a stretch of the Indian Ocean that lies within the archipelagic country's waters but is administered by Britain.

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