The U.K. has agreed to hand sovereignty of the long-contested Chagos Islands, an archipelago of more than 60 islands in the Indian Ocean, to Mauritius, in a deal to secure the future of a strategically important U.

Britain struck a deal to cede sovereignty over the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean to Mauritius, while keeping control of a strategically important UK-US military base for another century.Under the agreement,

After years of negotiations, the UK is giving up its sovereignty over a cluster of strategically important Indian Ocean islands. The move has led to criticism from Britain's Conservative opposition and some local Indigenous groups.