Foreign relations of Mauritius

Mauritius

This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Mauritius

Government President (List) Anerood Jugnauth Vice President Monique Ohsan Bellepeau Prime Minister (List) Navin Ramgoolam Parliament National Assembly Lord Speaker Rajkeswur Purryag The Cabinet MPs The Opposition Leader of the Opposition Paul Berenger Elections Elections in Mauritius Constituencies Political Parties Mauritian Labour Party Mauritian Militant Movement Mauritian Social Democrat Party Militant Socialist Movement Mauritian Solidarity Front Republican Movement Rodrigues Movement Rodrigues People's Organisation Mauritian Party of Xavier-Luc Duval The Greens Mauritian Militant Socialist Movement Dependencies Agalega Islands Union Territory Cargados Carajos Rodrigues Local Government Foreign Relations

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Mauritius has strong and friendly relations with the West, as well as with India and the countries of southern and eastern Africa. It is a member of the World Trade Organization, the Commonwealth of Nations, La Francophonie, the African Union, the Southern Africa Development Community, the Indian Ocean Commission, COMESA, and the recently formed Indian Ocean Rim Association.

Trade, commitment to democracy, and the country's small size are driving forces behind Mauritian foreign policy. The country's political heritage and dependence on Western markets have led to close ties with the European Union and its member states, particularly the United Kingdom and France, which exercises sovereignty over neighboring Reunion Island.

Considered part of Africa geographically, Mauritius has friendly relations with other African states in the region, particularly South Africa, by far its largest continental trading partner. Mauritian investors are gradually entering African markets, notably Madagascar and Mozambique. Mauritius coordinates much of its foreign policy with the Southern Africa Development Community and the Organization of African Unity.

Relations with France and India are strong for both historical and commercial reasons. Foreign embassies in Mauritius include Australia, the United Kingdom, People's Republic of China, Egypt, France, India, Madagascar, Pakistan, Russia, and the United States.

Mauritius is also a member of the International Criminal Court with a Bilateral Immunity Agreement of protection for the US-military (as covered under Article 98).

Disputes - international

Mauritius claims the entire Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean; claims the whole French-administered Tromelin Island, Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, and Juan de Nova Island

Bilateral relations

France

France has remained one of its biggest trading partners; in addition, the two countries share close cultural ties in language, media and literature. Mauritius is a member state of La Francophonie, an organization of French speaking countries.

India

Main article: Mauritius–India relations

India has remained one of its biggest trading partners; in addition India has deep social and historical links with a large portion of the population of Mauritius, India is the country's second largest source of foreign assistance.^[1]

Malaysia

Both countries share strong common ground when it comes to culture. Both were governed by both Dutch and British rulers and gained their independence in the second half of the twentieth century. Both have got sizeable representations of Indian and Chinese ethnic groups. Of the 30,000 people of Chinese ancestry residing in Mauritius, the vast majority come from the Hakka and Cantonese provinces, both of which are well present among Malaysia's population of Chinese ancestry. In both countries, Islam, Hinduism and Christianity are represented by important communities. Thus, Malaysia's population consists of 60.4% Muslims, 6.4% of Hindus and 9.1% of Christians; the respective figures for Mauritius are 16.6%, 52% and 30%.

Mauritius has established a High Commission in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia is not represented by an embassy in Mauritius, the closest delegates being posted to Zimbabwe. A Double Taxation Avoidance agreement exists between the two countries. Malaysian nationals do not require a visa to enter Mauritius, and Mauritian passport holders do not require a visa to enter Malaysia for tourism.

In recent years, the spectacular development experienced by Malaysia has seen a steady increase in the number of Mauritian visitors to the country. Official figures reveal that 2,320 Mauritian residents disembarked in Malaysia in 2010, a 27.8% increase on the previous year. While this is four times less than the number of Mauritians travelling to Singapore, the trend remains highly positive. In the other direction, 1,438 Malaysian tourists visited Mauritius in 2010, which represents a 23.5% rise on 2009 figures. Most of these tourists arrived during the months of May (143 visitors), June (118), September (188), November (179) and December (172).

Another recent trend has been that of Mauritian youngsters going to Malaysia for higher studies, encouraged by the affordable fees and quality of life. In 2010, 80 Mauritians travelled to Malaysia for this purpose, an eight-fold increase on 2009. An estimated 300 Mauritians were enrolled for tertiary education in Malaysia as at December 2010.

Pakistan

Main article: Mauritius–Pakistan relations

Relations between Pakistan and Mauritius were first established in 2006. Pakistan has an embassy at Port Louis and Mauritius has an embassy at Islamabad. The two countries are progressing the finalisation of a Free Trade Agreement.^[2][3]

Russia

Main article: Mauritius–Russia relations

The Soviet Union and Mauritius established diplomatic relations on 17 March 1968.^[4] The Russian Federation has an embassy in Port Louis, and Mauritius has an embassy in Moscow, which was opened in July 2003.^[5] The current Ambassador of Russia to Mauritius is Olga Ivanova. The current Ambassador of Mauritius to Russia is Mahendr Dosieah, who presented his Letters of Credence to Russian President Vladimir Putin on 25 July 2006.^[6]

South Africa

United Kingdom

United States

George W. Bush and Mauritian Prime Minister Anerood Jugnauth. Oval Office, June 26, 2003.

Main article: Mauritius – United States relations

Official U.S. representation in Mauritius dates from the end of the 18th century. An American consulate was established in 1794 and was closed in 1911. It was reopened in 1967 and elevated to embassy status upon Mauritius' independence in 1968. Since 1970, the mission has been directed by a resident U.S. ambassador. There is a U.S. Embassy in Port Louis, Mauritius.

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Department of State (Background Notes).[1]

Illicit drugs

Minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally

See also

• List of diplomatic missions of Mauritius

References

1. ^ http://www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-8640.html
2. ^ http://www.bilaterals.org/article.php3?id_article=12083
3. ^ http://www.commerce.gov.pk/read.asp?newsID=183
4. ^ Ginsburgs, George; Slusser, Robert M. (1981). A calendar of Soviet treaties, 1958-1973. BRILL. pp. 846. ISBN 9028606092. http://books.google.com/books?id=3X4nnE7eKjEC. Retrieved 2009-07-18. 
5. ^ "Российско-маврикийские отношения". Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 16 February 2009. http://www.mid.ru/ns-rafr.nsf/89414576079db559432569d8002421fc/2d1c6bcdbe47bb48c3257147004706b5?OpenDocument. Retrieved 2009-07-20. 
6. ^ "Vladimir Putin accepted the letters of credential from a number of foreign ambassadors.". The Kremlin, Moscow: Presidential Press and Information Office. 25 July 2006. http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/text/news/2006/07/109335.shtml. Retrieved 2008-10-07.