Chagos Archipelago case ends in favor of Maldives, assured 4,687sqm additional area
The Maldives argued that the base point cannot be determined by a reef spotted during low tide, according to international standards
The dispute over Chagos Archipelago
The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) has ruled that the Maldives will acquire a major sea-region, over the Chagos Archipelago issue.
The ITLOS Special Chamber delivered its judgement regarding the Chagos Archipelago issue on Friday afternoon.
There is an area of about 95,000 square kilometers between the Maldives and the Chagos Archipelago, which is not covered by 200 nautical miles.
Mauritius' submission to ITLOS stated that the point of determining the base point would start from the Blenheim Reef, which is visible during low tide.
The Maldives however, asserted that the base point cannot be determined by a reef spotted during low tide, according to international standards.
In the case of the delimitation, the Maldives argued that the separation from the sea should be determined from the coast of Chagos Islands.
In its judgement delivered on Friday, the ITLOS backed the statements made by the Maldives in connection with the case.
The special chambers of ITLOS in its judgement, ruled that there was no equivalent to the equidistance line to separate it from the reef seen in low tide.
With this ruling, after the conclusion of the case against Mauritius and in favor of the Maldives, the latter has been assured of an additional sea-area of 4,687 square kilometers from the disputed territory of the two countries.
