African leaders are gathering in Ethiopian capital for an annual meeting to discuss violence and conflicts in the continent. | EFE/STR via EPA UK’s hold on Chagos Islands is ‘wrongful act,’ say African leaders The UK is loath to give up control of the islands due to their strategic location in the Indian Ocean.

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — African leaders condemned the U.K.'s ongoing hold on the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean as a "wrongful act" that must be reversed.

The U.K. continued its administration of the Chagos Archipelago during the decolonization of Mauritius in 1965. But a nonbinding U.N. resolution issued in May last year ordered London to withdraw from the region within six months.

The islands are home to a strategic U.S. military base used for operations in the Middle East.

The request for Britain to complete its decolonization process came in draft conclusions of the African Union summit in Addis Ababa seen by POLITICO. During the summit, which ended Monday, leaders from across the region underlined Africa's determination for independence in a host of areas including security and trade.

"The United Kingdom is under an obligation to bring to an end its administration of the Chagos Archipelago as soon as possible," the draft conclusions read. "The continued administration of the Chagos Archipelago by the United Kingdom ... constitutes a wrongful act." Mauritius is a member of the African Union.

The U.K. is loath to give up control of the islands due to their strategic location between the Middle East and the South China Sea. Britain annexed the archipelago by evicting the islands' entire population and preventing them from returning home.