India and the geopolitics of Mauritius: The ‘Star and Key’ to the Indian Ocean

News Snapshot:

Few countries are closer to India than Mauritius. The ties that bind Delhi to Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius, are many. They include the island’s large Indian-origin population, constituting nearly 70 per cent of its 1.3 million people. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ongoing visit to the island state, almost exactly a decade after his last visit in March 2015, is about lending deeper strategic substance to this special bilateral relationship. Modi’s 2015 visit to Mauritius and Seychelles marked a recognition of the renewed geopolitical significance of the Western Indian Ocean islands. Modi’s speech outlining India’s SAGAR (security and growth...