ICJ‑Driven Base Leasebacks Tax Allies

Complying with International Court of Justice pressure on colonial legacies can morph strategic bases into cash annuities for small states. The UK’s plan to pay Mauritius about $138 million per year to lease back Diego Garcia shows how legal rulings create durable rent extraction from Western power projection. — It reframes decolonization compliance as a recurring strategic cost that will reshape basing politics, alliance bargains, and defense budgets.