The Maldivian Democratic Party has welcomed the “sudden change” in policy towards India by the government led by President Mohamed Muizzu and said that Maldives has always believed that India will always be the first to respond whenever Maldives “dials the international 911”.
Abdullah Shahid, president of the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), made the remarks after meeting External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday.
The MDP president said his party “demands the Muizzu government to publicly apologise for the actions, lies and irresponsible remarks of its officials which have resulted in considerable damage to the foreign and economic outlook of the Maldives.”
Jaishankar is on a three-day official visit to the Maldives to strengthen bilateral ties. This is the first high-level visit from India after the archipelago country’s pro-China President Muizzu took office last year.
“It gives me immense pleasure to extend a warm welcome to Indian External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar in Maldives along with my colleagues from the @MDPSecretariat and to meet him,” former foreign minister Shahid said in a statement posted on ‘X’ late Saturday night.
He said, “Maldives has always believed that India will always be the first responder whenever Maldives dials “International 911″.”
He said, “The current Government’s incitement to anti-India sentiments through aggressive slogans, ridicule and portrayal of a time-tested friend and development partner as a regional bully has resulted in the decline of Maldives’ international reputation, economic damage and many other unnecessary difficulties and challenges.”
“Keeping this in mind, the MDP welcomes President Muizzu government’s sudden change in Maldives-India policy from the previous India In policy,” Shahid said.
Relations between India and Maldives have become quite tense since Muizzu became President late last year.
Within hours of taking oath, he demanded the withdrawal of Indian military personnel deployed on three aviation platforms gifted by India to the Maldives. After talks between the two countries, the Indian military personnel were replaced by civilians.
On Saturday, President Muizzo described India as “one of the closest allies” and reaffirmed his administration’s full commitment to strengthening the historical and close ties between the two countries.
“The MDP hopes that this change will not be temporary or superficial, but rather coherent and meaningful, in the best interest of the Maldivian people,” Shahid said.
In a separate statement, MDP welcomed Jaishankar’s visit to Maldives.
It said, “Maldives-India relations have always been based on the principles of mutual respect, respect for international law, territorial integrity, shared desire for regional security, and an open and peaceful Indian Ocean.”
The MDP thanked India for its continued support to the people of Maldives.
“The MDP welcomes the exchange of information during this visit to train over 1,000 civil service officers – a major human resources programme launched during the government of (former) President (Ibrahim Mohamed) Solih.”
“The MDP also welcomes the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Economic Development and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to enhance and expand digital and integrated payment systems – another MoU that was discussed and finalised during President Solih’s administration,” it said.
“The MDP welcomes with gratitude the inauguration and handover to India of six High Impact Community Development Projects, implemented with grant assistance from the Government of India and signed and implemented during the administration of President Solih,” the statement said.
It said the High Impact Community Development Project Scheme is a highly successful and beneficial grant-in-aid scheme launched in 2019.
“The party welcomes the award of water and sewerage projects in 28 islands funded through the Exim Bank of India,” the statement said.
It said these projects were initiated through the US$ 800 million Line of Credit extended by the Government of India during the first State visit of former President Solih to India in December 2018 and were inaugurated during his administration.
Maldives is one of India’s key maritime neighbours in the Indian Ocean region and the tenure of the previous government led by President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih witnessed growth in overall bilateral relations, including in the areas of defence and security.