Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2001) - Glorioso Islands (2005)

Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2001) z Glorioso Islands (2005)

	British Indian Ocean Territory (2001)	Glorioso Islands (2005)

Airports	1 (2000 est.)	1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.)	-
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 60 sq km land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago	total: 5 sq km land: 5 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ile Glorieuse, Ile du Lys, Verte Rocks, Wreck Rock, and South Rock
Area - comparative	about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC	about eight times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Background	Established as a territory of the UK in 1965, a number of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) islands were transferred to the Seychelles when it attained independence in 1976. Subsequently, BIOT has consisted only of the six main island groups comprising the Chagos Archipelago. The largest and most southerly of the islands, Diego Garcia, contains a joint UK-US naval support facility. All of the remaining islands are uninhabited. Former agricultural workers, earlier resident in the islands, were relocated primarily to Mauritius but also to the Seychelles, between 1967 and 1973. In 2000, a British High Court ruling invalidated the local immigration order which had excluded them from the archipelago, but upheld the special military status of Diego Garcia.	A French possession since 1892, the Glorioso Islands are composed of two lushly vegetated coral islands (Ile Glorieuse and Ile du Lys) and three rock islets. A military garrison operates a weather and radio station on Ile Glorieuse.
Climate	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds	tropical
Coastline	698 km	35.2 km
Country name	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Glorioso Islands local long form: none local short form: Iles Glorieuses
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London	possession of France; administered by the Administrateur Superieur of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas territory of the UK)	none (possession of France)
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (overseas territory of the UK)	none (possession of France)
Disputes - international	the Chagos Archipelago is claimed by Mauritius and Seychelles	claimed by Madagascar
Economy - overview	All economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of Diego Garcia, where joint UK-US defense facilities are located. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the UK, Mauritius, the Philippines, and the US. There are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. When the Ilois return, they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing.	no economic activity
Electricity - consumption	NA kWh	-
Electricity - production	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military	-
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 12 m
Environment - current issues	NA	NA
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Commissioner John WHITE (since NA); Administrator Louise SAVILL (since NA); note - both reside in the UK cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch	-
Flag description	white with six blue wavy horizontal stripes; the flag of the UK is in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the striped section bears a palm tree and yellow crown centered on the outer half of the flag	the flag of France is used
Geographic coordinates	6 00 S, 71 30 E	11 30 S, 47 20 E
Geography - note	archipelago of 2,300 islands; Diego Garcia, largest and southernmost island, occupies strategic location in central Indian Ocean; island is site of joint US-UK military facility	the islands and rocks are surrounded by an extensive reef system
Highways	total: NA km paved: short stretch of paved road of NA km between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km	-
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	1 (2000)	-
Irrigated land	0 sq km (1993)	0 sq km (1998 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: NA% other: NA%	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (all lush vegetation and coconut palms) (2001)
Legal system	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply	the laws of France, where applicable, apply
Location	Southern Asia, archipelago in the Indian Ocean, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia	Southern Africa, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northwest of Madagascar
Map references	World	Africa
Maritime claims	exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 3 NM	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016	defense is the responsibility of France
Natural hazards	NA	periodic cyclones
Natural resources	coconuts, fish, sugarcane	guano, coconuts
Population	no indigenous inhabitants note: approximately 1,200 former agricultural workers resident in the Chagos Archipelago, often referred to as Chagossians or Ilois, were relocated to Mauritius and the Seychelles around the time of the construction of UK-US military facilities; in 1995, there were approximately 1,700 UK and US military personnel and 1,500 civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia	no indigenous inhabitants note: there is a small French military garrison along with a few meteorologists; visited by scientists (July 2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	Diego Garcia	none; offshore anchorage only
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)	-
Radios	NA	-
Telephone system	general assessment: separate facilities for military and public needs are available domestic: all commercial telephone services are available, including connection to the Internet international: international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000)	-
Telephones - main lines in use	NA	-
Television broadcast stations	1 (1997)	-
Terrain	flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation)	low and flat
Waterways	none	-

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