Great Britain: A New Beginning?

Even as one colony cut itself away last week, Britain was gaining another. The tiny (pop. 1,000), horseshoe-shaped atoll of Diego Garcia* may not be another Rhodesia, but in the long run it could play a crucial role in Britain's defense.

A palm-topped flyspeck in the Indian Ocean 1,100 miles southwest of Ceylon, Diego Garcia is the first in a series of four strategically located islets that may ultimately buttress Britain's "farflung battle line" of bases (see map). Along with the Seychelle atolls of Aldabra (pop. 100), Farquhar (172) and Des Roches (112),...

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