Comment by reaperducer
7 months ago
Close to Africa/ME: Maldives, Seychelles, Comoros, Mayotte
Close to SE Asia: Cocos and Christmas Island
That's the whole point of Diego Garcia: It's not "close to" anywhere, and it's nearly in the middle of a bunch of places. That's what give it its strategic importance.
The Maldives are only ~400mi N of Diego Garcia.
So its 400mi away from another set of tiny islands which themselves are hundreds of miles from the mainland.
I'd still argue that's pretty much "not close to anywhere."