Take a peek inside Diego Garcia's ‘Mysterious’ Island
Hello everyone, welcome back again with us at Military TV.
In this episode, we are going to discuss about the Mysterious Island, ‘Diego Garcia'.
The atoll of Diego Garcia is in the Chagos Islands located on a large shoal area known as the Great
Chagos Bank. Diego Garcia is the largest of 55 islands that form the Chagos Archipelago
within the British Indian Ocean Territory and is known as the "Footprint of Freedom" for its shape,
regional location, and strategic importance. The island is located
seven degrees south of the equator very close to the geographic center of the Indian Ocean.
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Diego Garica was discovered by Portuguese explorers in the early sixteenth century
and its name is believed to have come from either an early explorer's ship captain or its
navigator. Under the Treaty of Paris of 1814, many of the islands in the Indian Ocean under
the control of the French were ceded to Britain, including the Mauritius and the Chagos Islands.
In 1965, these islands became the British Indian Ocean Territory.
During the 19th Century, the islands were used as plantations, producing copra and coconut oils.
Plantations on Diego Garcia were closed in 1971, following a decision to establish the U.S. Navy
Support Facility based on the 1966 Exchange of Notes between Great Britain and the United States.
In January 1971, U.S. Navy Seabees were transported to the island by landing ship
to begin building the U.S. military presence on Diego Garcia. Today Diego Garcia is home to 15
separate commands, including the U.S. Navy Support Facility, which functions as the host command.
Its position is strategically vital for the US, allowing it to project its military strength
northwest into the Middle East and South Asia, east into Asia, or west into Africa.
It's the most important US base in the Indian Ocean region. Diego Garcia is surrounded by
about 60 other atolls. Its coast forms a deep natural harbor, making it the perfect
site for a naval base. Diego Garcia has been the site of important military action by the US.
On the remote tropical island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean lies a secretive, strategically
vital US military base. Before that, the site had proved its strategic importance for US military
operations in the Middle East as a base for Air Force attacks in 1991 during the first Gulf War.
From the base, long-range B52 bombers embarked on missions to Afghanistan in 2001,
targeting Taliban and Qaeda positions in the country's mountains. The base is also vital as
a refueling point for the US Navy and Air Force. Its deep port is able to accommodate aircraft
carriers, nuclear submarines, and other ships. With Diego Garcia accessible only to restricted
US military personnel, its secrecy has attracted speculation. Unlike the US military base in Guam,
the spouses of personnel are not allowed on Diego Garcia. No journalist has visited.
The UN court ruled that it was illegal for the British to demand possession of the islands as
a condition of independence. Shortly afterward, the British leased Diego Garcia to the US.
The UN has now served an eviction notice to the British. Though the ruling is not enforceable,
it exerts moral pressure and has placed the future of the base in doubt.
The base has served as a launchpad for US military operations in the Middle East
and as a refueling point for Air Force patrols headed to the South China Sea,
and it was even designated an emergency landing spot for space missions by NASA.
Talking about Diego Garcia in terms of the facts, the history, and the mystery.
Rumors have long circulated of a US prison camp on the tiny atoll in the Indian Ocean,
though Washington exists no such facility exists. Diego Garcia is a 17 sq. mile horseshoe-shaped
atoll in the Indian Ocean's Chagos Archipelago. It has a tropical climate with thick jungles
and white sand beaches. The island's value is its strategic location between East Africa, the Middle
East, and Southeast Asia, making it a vital asset for supplying US naval forces and projecting air
power into Asia and the Middle East. During the Cold War, Britain agreed to lease Diego Garcia
to the American military for the construction of a naval base on the island. To make way for the
base some 2,000 native Chagossians were forcibly removed from the island by the British government
between 1968 and 1973. The islanders have since sued unsuccessfully for the right to return home.
An estimated 3,000-5,000 military and civilian personnel now live on Diego Garcia,
most of them American and British. The island was used as a launch pad for bombing missions
over Iraq during the first Gulf War in 1991 and war in Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003.
America's 50-year lease on Diego Garcia is due to expire in 2016 and is up for renewal this
year. There has long been an air of mystery around Diego Garcia, in part because access to the island
is so restricted. There have been rumours of a US prison camp on the island for over a decade,
but Washington has made repeated assurances that no such prison exists.
Thanks for watching and we hope you enjoy the video.