British Indian Ocean Territory

Introduction

British Indian Ocean Territory is located in Africa, with its capital being Diego Garcia and the official language being English.

pound is the legal tender of British Indian Ocean Territory. The top-level domain of British Indian Ocean Territory is .io, and to make an overseas call to British Indian Ocean Territory, you need to add +246 / 00246 before the number.

The IANA time zone of British Indian Ocean Territory is Indian/Chagos. The local time is 2 hours ahead compared to Beijing time. On 2025-12-29, the sunrise time in British Indian Ocean Territory's capital Diego Garcia is 06:56, and the sunset time is 19:28.

British Indian Ocean Territory: Strategic Location and Sovereignty Dispute

The British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) is a British Overseas Territory located in the central Indian Ocean, consisting of the Chagos Archipelago, which contains 58 coral islands, the largest of which is Diego Garcia. The region is strategically important, having been separated from Mauritius (then a British colony) by the British in the 1950s, and with the forced removal of the original inhabitants between 1966 and 1973, it is now used mainly as a British and American military base, and is an important outpost of the US military in the Indian Ocean. Sovereignty is claimed by Mauritius and the Maldives, and the International Court of Justice and the United Nations have ruled on several occasions that Britain should end its control over the area. The Territory has no permanent residents, only military and related personnel, and its ecosystem is strictly protected, with the surrounding waters known for their rich coral reefs and marine life.