The Maldivian Government has stated that the administration's decision to vote in favor of Mauritius over the Chagos Archipelago dispute will not hinder the territorial dispute case ongoing at International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITOLS) to determine the maritime border of Maldives.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs published a statement on behalf of the Maldivian Government, stating that current and past administrations of Maldives have always stood against colonialism. As such, the statement highlighted that Maldives has stood by this since the country became a member of United Nations in 21 September 1965.

Maldives, along with the United States, Hungary, Israel and Australia voted against the resolution, which endorses an advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on February 25, 2019, which sets a six-month deadline for Britain to withdraw from the Chagos island chain and for the islands to be reunified with neighboring Mauritius.

The vote saw 116 nations in favor of the motion while 56 countries abstained from the vote.

Explaining the reason behind Maldives’ decision to vote no at the UN General Assembly in New York on May 22, 2019, Maldives’ Permanent Representative Thilmeeza Hussain emphasized that the country’s vote “should not be construed as a vote or a position taken against the co-sponsors of the resolution with whom, we have excellent relations.”

However, she noted that the Maldives does not believe that “a decision made by any international body that does not reflect the genuine interests of the states concerned can amount to an effective and long lasting solution.”

She added that the Maldives “has always” believed that Chagos archipelago issues “would be best addressed through dialogue between the states concerned.”

Ambassador Thilmeeza highlighted that the resolution will have “serious implications” for Maldives.

However, the current administration has made the decision to vote in favor of Mauritius for the resolution submitted to the next UN General Assembly regarding the Chagos Islands dispute.

Chagossians were forcibly removed to make way for a US military facility on Diego Garcia, between 1967 and 1973. Mauritius, which gained independence in 1968, maintains that the islands are its own, and says it was forced to give up the Indian Ocean group in 1965 in exchange for independence.

The case of territorial dispute over an area between the Maldives and Chagos Archipelago, which was filed by Mauritius ITLOS is different from the dispute between Mauritius and United Kingdom over the archipelago.

Speaking at a press conference, Miuvan Mohamed, Spokesperson at the President's Office noted that there is no political agenda behind the case ongoing at ITOLS.

Miuvan noted that administration is taking into accord the expert opinion of all government institutions, the state legal team as well as the international legal team, in the case.

He stated that the administration is well aware of the all steps taken regarding the case and went on to refute the claims being made regarding the administration's stand in the case.

The President's Office has earlier also stated that the administration's stand regarding the issue brought up by Mauritius stating that Maldivian Economic Zone extends into the Chagos Archipelago, remains unchanged.

Chagos Archipelago comprises of seven atolls with more than 60 islands. The archipelago is located about 500 kilometers south of the Maldives.