Countries agree UK-US military base on Diego Garcia will continue to operate

The UK and Mauritius have agreed to hold talks on the future of the disputed Chagos Islands, where Britain and the US have a joint military base.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said the countries agreed that the UK-US military base on Diego Garcia will continue to operate whatever the results of the talks.

Mauritius claims the remote archipelago in the Indian Ocean in full – but it is administered by the UK.

• Britain ordered by UN to return control of Chagos Islands to Mauritius
• HMS Diamond crew carry out beach cleanup as part of international effort
• Descendants of those exiled to make way for US Air Base fear deportation from UK

The Foreign Secretary said the UK wants to broker an agreement backed by international law to "resolve all outstanding issues" over the Indian Ocean archipelago, a British overseas territory since 1814.

"The UK and Mauritius have agreed to engage in constructive negotiations, with a view to arriving at an agreement by early next year," Mr Cleverly said in a written ministerial statement.

In 1965, Britain chose to separate the islands from Mauritius and set up a military base there.

Chagossians have spent decades fighting to return to the islands after more than 1,000 people were forced to leave in the 1960s and 1970s to make way for the base.

The United Nation's highest court, the International Court of Justice, in The Hague, has ruled that the UK's administration of the territory is "unlawful" and must end.

Mauritius, which won independence from the UK in 1968, maintains the islands are its own and Chagossians have fought for their return in the British courts.

Mr Cleverly said the UK has agreed to negotiations "on the exercise of sovereignty" of the islands.

The progress follows talks between Liz Truss, during her short window as prime minister, and Mauritian leader Pravind Jugnauth at the UN General Assembly in New York in September.

"Through negotiations, taking into account relevant legal proceedings, it is our intention to secure an agreement on the basis of international law to resolve all outstanding issues, including those relating to the former inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago," the Foreign Secretary wrote.