ArcaMax

The island is named Diego Garcia, the biggest little island in the Indian Ocean's isolated Chagos Archipelago.

Never heard of it? Consult the map -- it's south of India and kinda sorta between Indonesia (Java) and East Africa (Tanzania).

Nowhere? Recall the real estate agent's lingo for valuable acreage: Location, Location, Location.

In our world of satellites, ICBMs, nuclear subs, long-range strategic bombers, linked radars, cyber systems, electronic relays and wars in Southwest, Central and South Asia. In our world of threatened sea lanes, not just the Red Sea but Indian Ocean connections to the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans -- Diego Garcia's betwixt and between position is pure geo-strategic gold, platinum, West Texas Sweet and Saudi Light (premium oil grades) combined.

The Hawaiian Islands (to include Pearl Harbor on Oahu) are the central Pacific's perfect base area. Tiny Diego Garcia is the Indian Ocean's rough Hawaii equivalent.

Because of Location: The island hosts an American super-strategic airbase (meaning it easily handles heavy bombers and air tankers that can refuel all aircraft), a naval base (a technically elite base that can re-arm nuclear subs and guided missile destroyers) and a fairly well-protected anchorage.

I say fairly well because I've no insight on the base's air and missile defenses. They should be -- to steal a Trumpian phrase -- an American Iron Dome. I suspect in a couple of years they will have better air-space defense.

More: In Diego Garcia's water, "pre-positioned" freighters and tankers wait at anchor, packed with tanks, ammo, fuel, food, water, the arms and material it takes for armies, navies and air forces to kill terrorists, to hammer whack job regimes in central and southwest Asia (e.g., Iran) and -- this is a big "and" -- deter Communist China's 21st-century slow war for strategic position on Planet Earth.

Yes, the Big Strategic War For Position.

For position to win The Next Big War.

Strategic positions recently in the headlines: Panama. Greenland.

Don't measure Beijing's pre-war moves in days, weeks, months, even years.

China's deadly chess moves are decadely.

Is decadely a word?

In terms of Communist China's global slow war for planetary geographic strategic position, decadely is damn straight accurate.

Given Diego Garcia's proximity to China's African and southwest Asian supply lines, eliminating or complicating U.S. access to the base advances China's decadely economic war for strategic position.

For the record, China has pursued a decadely war of strategic position in the South China Sea, turning reefs into artificial islands and seizing Filipino waters. In 2016, the U.N.'s Hague's arbitration court ruled China's seizure of Filipino territory and resources illegal. Beijing ignored the ruling.

International law? Lawless Communist China disregards any soft power proclamation. Only hard power -- guns, political spine -- deters Beijing.

In strategic terms, Beijing's hard power imperialism has successfully seized Filipino territory.

Alas, Diego Garcia is a British territory -- or it was until October 2024. Britain's Labor Prime Minister Keir Starmer caved to Chinese-influenced guilt-trip anti-Western lawfare diplomacy and agreed to a puzzling capitulation of territorial control based on historical wrongs and imperialism, and the island nation of Mauritius (several hundred miles north of Diego Garcia) would gain control of the Chagos, but the U.S. and Britain would retain the base via lease ... but ... but what?

Well, we're not quite sure what. Supposedly, Starmer wanted the hazy deal done before U.S. elections in case Donald Trump won.

Fact: In 2021, Mauritius signed a free trade agreement with Beijing.

More intrigue: The new Mauritian leader, Navin Ramgoolam, elected in November 2024, has questioned the deal. He seems to think Britain isn't paying enough for the base's lease.

Ramgoolam knows its value. Diego Garcia served as a base for U.S. B-52 and B-1 bombers striking Iraq and Afghanistan and for tankers refueling U.S. aircraft throughout the region.

In October 2024, Idaho Sen. James Risch said Starmer's decision "gives in to Chinese lawfare and yields to pressure from unaccountable international institutions like the International Court of Justice at the expense of U.S. and U.K. strategic and military interests."

Risch got that right.

It seems The Trump Effect has reached the Indian Ocean. The U.S. should demand Britain retain control of Diego Garcia ... or perhaps cede it to the U.S., for 200 years.

That's Chinese decadely strategy times 20.

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To find out more about Austin Bay and read features by other Creators writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.

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