Former President Mohamed Nasheed has expressed strong opposition to the United Kingdom's decision to transfer sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.

In a post shared on the social media platform X, President Nasheed emphasized that the UK should not proceed with the handover when there is a clear Maldivian claim to the territory.

asserting that the atoll is part of Maldivian territory.

The UK’s decision to return the Chagos Islands to Mauritius was announced in a joint statement by the Prime Ministers of both nations.

After more than 50 years of British control, the islands are set to be handed over following two years of negotiations.

The Chagos Archipelago, located 500 kilometers south of the Maldives, includes Diego Garcia, an island where the United States operates a key military base.

Diego Garcia, a strategic location in the region, has been leased to the US for decades and plays a critical role in regional security, particularly in relation to India and China.

The new agreement between the UK and Mauritius will allow the US to continue its operations on Diego Garcia despite the change in sovereignty.

The UK's decision comes in response to a 2019 advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) which declared the British occupation of the Chagos Islands illegal, stating that Mauritius is the rightful sovereign.

Though the opinion was not legally binding, it was supported by a United Nations General Assembly vote.

In a related territorial dispute, Mauritius previously filed a case against the Maldives at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) over maritime boundaries.

ITLOS ruled in favor of dividing the disputed area between the two nations, granting the Maldives 47,232 square kilometers of the sea and Mauritius 45,331 square kilometers.

The ruling has shaped the territorial boundaries between the two nations, but the debate over sovereignty remains contentious.