To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in negotiations with the Maldives on maritime demarcations between Maldive territorial waters and those around the Chagos Archipelago; and if he will make a statement. (175823)

There is no overlap of territorial waters between the Maldives and the British Indian Ocean Territory.

A draft agreement on the boundary between the Maldives Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and the British Indian Ocean Territory Fishery Zone was agreed at technical level in 1992, but it has never been signed and is not in force. Since 1992, the Maldives has replaced its 1976 legislation on the EEZ with Act No 6/96 dated June 1996. Notwithstanding the changes to this EEZ legislation, which introduces archipelagic baseline points, it seems to respect the boundary agreed in draft in 1992.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what use was made of the equidistance principle in determining the maritime boundaries between the Republic of Maldives and the United Kingdom territory of the Chagos Archipelago; and if he will make a statement. (175826)

The draft agreement reached in 1992, which would set out the maritime boundary between the Maldives Exclusive Economic Zone and the British Indian Ocean Territory Fishery Zone, is based entirely on the equidistance principle with no adjustment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library copies of the exchange of correspondence between the UK and the Republic of Maldives that led to the Memorandum of Agreement of 1993 on the Chagos Archipelago maritime delimitation line. (175827)

Representatives of the Government of the Republic of Maldives and the Government met in November 1992 to discuss the delimitation of the maritime boundary between the Maldives and the British Indian Ocean Territory. Disclosure of the minutes to this meeting, together with a copy of the draft agreement attached thereto, could only be made after consultation with the Government of the Maldives.