Diego Garcia: The Strategic U.S Military Base in Indian Ocean

take a peek inside diego garcia's mysterious island hello everyone welcome back again with us at military tv in this episode we're going to discuss 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 7 degrees south of the equator very close to the geographic center of the indian ocean before watching don't forget to leave your comment below if you have any suggestions or certain topics to discuss for the next videos diego garcia was discovered by portuguese explorers in the early 16th century and its name is believed to have come from either an early explorer 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 meridians 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 cobra 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 u.s 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 u.s on the remote tropical island of diego garcia in the indian ocean lies a secretive strategically vital u.s military base before that the site had proved its strategic importance for u.s 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 b-52 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 u.s 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 u.s military personnel its secrecy has attracted speculation unlike the u.s military base in guam the spouses of personnel are not allowed on diego garcia no journalist has visited the u.n 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 u.s the u.n 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 launch pad for u.s 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 u.s prison camp on the tiny atoll in the indian ocean though washington insists no such facility exists diego garcia is a 17 square 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 u.s 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 two thousand native chagosians were forcibly removed from the island by the british government between 1968 and 1973. the islanders have since sued unsuccessfully for the rights to return home an estimated 3000-5000 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. the 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 restrictive there have been rumors of a u.s 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

Channel: Military TV

Views: 2,378,217

Keywords: diego garcia, indian ocean, us military, diego garcia air force base, diego garcia island, diego garcia (island), diego garcia military, diego garcia tour, indian ocean base, air force base, navy base, british indian ocean territory, united kingdom, united states base, chagos archipelago, secret base, biot, BIOT, military base, diego garcia island in hindi, us military base, us navy in indian ocean, us military bases around the world, us military bases, diego garcia 2021

Id: YUTT7cfuCAQ

Length: 6min 31sec (391 seconds)

Published: Sat Mar 06 2021