Nasheed: Mauritius’ decision to sever ties ‘worrying’, but Maldives does not need to back down

While Mauritius’ decision to sever diplomatic relations is very worrying, this does not mean the Maldives needs to back down from its position over the Chagos dispute, says former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed.

On Friday, Mauritius’ cabinet decided to suspend all diplomatic relations with the Maldives over its recent stance, no longer recognizing Mauritius sovereignty over Chagos archipelago, and objecting to the UK-Mauritius agreement whereby UK had agreed to handover Chagos archipelago to Mauritius.

Reacting to this in a post on X on Friday night, Nasheed said he finds it “very worrying.”

He also expressed hopes both countries will be able to discuss matters and resolve things amicably.

It's very worrying that Mauritius has decided to sever diplomatic relations with the Maldives. I hope both countries will be able to discuss matters and resolve things amicably.@PMOMauritius @presidencymv

— Mohamed Nasheed (@MohamedNasheed) February 27, 2026

And later, in a WhatsApp group for tourism industry representatives, Nasheed said he does not believe the Maldives needs to back down from its stand while engaging in talks with Mauritius.

“We need to talk to Mauritius, but the Maldives does not need back down,” he wrote.

In May 2025, the UK officially agreed to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos archipelago to Mauritius, ending over two centuries of British rule, in exchange for allowing the United States and UK to continue operating the strategically important Diego Garcia military base for the next 99 years.

But on February 5, Maldivian President Dr Mohamed Muizzu told the Parliament that the government formally submitted objections to the UK on November 8, 2024 and January 18, 2026, rejecting the handover of Chagos to Mauritius.

He also announced the decision to retract a letter sent to Mauritius government by his predecessor, former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih back in 2022, acknowledging Mauritius’ sovereign authority over the Chagos archipelago following the country’s independence from British colonial rule.

He has long asserted that the Maldives is geographically closer, more historically connected, and legally better placed than Mauritius to assert sovereignty over the Chagos Islands, known in the Maldives as Foalhavahi.

This opinion is shared by Nasheed.

UK, which had severed the Chagos Islands from Mauritius before independence, claiming it to be a part of British-Indian Ocean Territory in the Indian Ocean, had forcibly deported over thousands of inhabitants of Diego Garcia, the largest of the 60 small islands in the archipelago, so that they could lease the island to the US for a military base.

Maldives became involved in the dispute as the country's exclusive economic zone overlaps with that of Chagos.

In April 2023, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) concluded that the 95,563 square kilometer area between Mauritius and Maldives would be divided between the two using the equidistance formula.

The ruling granted the Maldives 47,232 square kilometers, while awarding 45,331 square kilometers to Mauritius.

However, President Muizzu’s People’s National Congress (PNC) has long asserted that the Maldives is entitled to the entire 95,563 square kilometers.

For the longest time, UK refused to comply with decisions by international bodies urging the handover of Chagos Islands to Mauritius – deeming the British occupation of the islands illegal. This included the 2019 decision by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the United Nations’ highest court.

In a turn of events, UK agreed to Mauritius regarding handover of Chagos in November 2022, and in 2025, the UK signed a multibillion-dollar deal to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Islands. The deal allowed Britain to retain control of the strategically important US-UK air base on Diego Garcia under a 99-year lease.