India Maldives

Maldives president inaugurates airport built with assistance from India

Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu has inaugurated the Hanimaadhoo International Airport, a project funded under the Indian government's Line of Credit assistance, calling it a gateway to prosperity for the country's north. Muizzu inaugurated the airport on Sunday and described it as a "catalyst for unlocking the potential of the northern Maldives and enhancing global connectivity", according to a statement by the President's Office. Calling it a gateway to prosperity for the north, he said, This is not just an airport, it is a symbol of economic transformation." Muizzu said that the newly opened airport would bring further advancement to tourism, agriculture, fisheries, and the economy, as well as social development to the north, the Sun.mv news portal reported. The inauguration was attended by Indian Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu and senior officials from both nations. Speaking on the occasion, Muizzu said the airport serves as a monument that testifies to the

India extends Maldives' $50 million govt bonds repayment deadline

New Delhi has rolled over, for one more year, USD 50 million Maldives' government bonds as an emergency financial assistance, the Indian High Commission said here Thursday. The deadline for the repayment of a USD 50 million Treasury Bill (T-bill) was extended once again on the request of the Maldives government. Since March 2019, the Government of India has been facilitating subscription of several such Treasury Bills by the State Bank of India (SBI) and rolling them over, annually, interest-free to the Government of Maldives, the Indian High Commission said in a statement. On the request of the Government of Maldives, the State Bank of India (SBI) has subscribed, for one more year, a USD 50 million Government Treasury Bill issued by the Ministry of Finance of Maldives, the statement said. The deadline for repayment was Thursday. This has been done under a unique Government-to-Government arrangement, as an emergency financial assistance to Maldives, the statement, posted on the Hi

Heartfelt thanks to PM Modi for state visit, says Maldives President

Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu on Saturday thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his state visit to the Maldives.Muizzu said that the visit was fruitful, as they witnessed the exchange of four MoUs and three agreements in vital areas, and announced the launch of FTA negotiations.In a post on X, he said, "I extend heartfelt thanks to Prime Minister His Excellency Shri Narendra Modi for his state visit to the Maldives. We held fruitful discussions, witnessed the exchange of 4 MoUs & 3 agreements in vital areas, and announced the launch of FTA negotiations. Together, we celebrated the Maldives' 60th Independence Day, released a commemorative stamp marking 60 years of formal ties, and inaugurated key development projects under Indian assistance. A defining visit that sets a clear path for the future of India-Maldives relations."Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it was an honour for him to attend the Independence Day celebrations of the Maldives.In a post on X, he said, "It was

India, Maldives sign 8 key deals across finance, digital, fisheries sectors

India and the Maldives on Friday exchanged eight key agreements covering a wide range of sectors, including Line of Credit, debt repayment, fisheries, digital transformation, and Unified Payments Interface (UPI), in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu."Delighted to exchange eight Agreements related to Line of Credit, debt repayment, FTA, fisheries & aquaculture, digital transformation, pharmacopoeia and UPI in the presence of PM @narendramodi and President @MMuizzu today in Male," External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar posted on X.Confirming the development, the President's Office of the Maldives stated, "President witnesses exchange of key MoUs and agreements between the Maldives and India."The exchange of agreements set the tone for high-level discussions that followed, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Mohamed Muizzu took stock of the implementation of the India-Maldives Joint Vision for a 'Comprehensive Economic ...

PM Modi offers $565 mn credit line to Maldives, opens door for FTA

PM Modi also reiterated India's commitment to supporting Maldives' defence capabilities, given it is seeking to maintain its influence amid a growing Chinese presence

PM Modi leaves for UK, Maldives, says visit will boost bilateral ties

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday left on a four-day visit to the UK and the Maldives, expressing confidence that this will boost India's ties with the two countries. In his departure statement, Modi said India and the United Kingdom share a comprehensive strategic partnership that has witnessed significant progress in recent years. He noted that the collaboration between the two countries spans a wide range of sectors, including trade, investment, technology, innovation, defence, education, research, sustainability, health and people-to-people ties. "During my meeting with Prime Minister Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer, we will have the opportunity to further enhance our economic partnership, aimed at fostering prosperity, growth and job creation in both countries," Modi said. The prime minister will also meet King Charles III during the visit. Modi will then travel to the Maldives at the invitation of President Mohamed Muizzu in what is being seen as a breakthrough in the ties .

India, Maldives in talks to deepen bilateral trade, investment ties

India and the Maldives discussed ways to explore new opportunities for economic cooperation and trade enhancement, state-run media said on Saturday. The discussion for strengthening trade was held during a meeting between India's Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal and Maldivian Economic Development and Trade Minister Mohamed Saeed here on Friday. The meeting, held at the Maldivian Economic Ministry as part of Barthwal's visit, focused on exploring new areas of economic collaboration and strengthening existing trade ties, according to Public Service Media (PSM News), the state-run media. After the meeting, Saeed said in a post on X: Had a productive meeting today with India's Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal. We discussed strengthening trade and investment partnerships between our nations and exploring new opportunities for economic cooperation. The Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in a post on X, said Barthwal had a constructive meeting with Saeed, focusin

India, Maldives sign 13 MoUs for projects under Indian grant assistance

India has signed 13 MoUs with the Maldives for enhancing ferry services in the island nation with an MVR 100 million grant, expanding maritime connectivity and uplifting community livelihoods. The MoUs signed on Sunday are for projects to be implemented under the Indian grant assistance schemeHigh Impact Community Development Project (HICDP) Phase III. The signing ceremony took place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, marking another milestone in the ever-strengthening partnership between the two countries, the Maldives' Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. The 13 projects launched under this phase amount to a total grant of MVR 100 million (about Rs 55,28,47,552), primarily aimed at enhancing ferry services in the Maldives, expanding connectivity, and uplifting community livelihoods, it said. "Forging ties with Community Development. On May 18, India and the Maldives signed 13 MoUs for enhancing ferry services in the Maldives with an MVR 100 mn grant under HICDP III. .

India rolls over $50 million support for Maldives amid debt crisis

China and India remain the Maldives' biggest creditor nations and both regional rivals vie for influence in the strategically located Indian Ocean nation

Govt extends financial aid to Maldives via rollover of $50 mn Treasury Bill

It was noted that since March 2019, India has been facilitating subscription of several such Treasury Bills by the SBI and rolling them over, annually, interest-free

Maldives' security relies on good ties with India: Ex-President Nasheed

He acknowledged that there was a drop in the number of Indian tourists travelling to Maldives

In close touch with Male: India on Maldives' looming economic crisis

As the Maldives faces a looming economic crisis, India on Friday said it is in close touch with the island nation regarding the situation. The economy of the Maldives is reeling under increasing pressure, largely because of debt distress. "We remain in close touch with Maldivian authorities on the situation facing them," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. He was responding to a question at his weekly media briefing. Jaiswal also referred to some recent agreements signed by the Maldivian government, saying they are likely to result in revenue loss and that it is a matter of concern. "We would, obviously, need to take that into account while framing our own policies," he said. To a separate question on the upcoming talks between the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB), Jaiswal said India expects all mutually-agreed agreements to be honoured. The director general-level talks between the BSF and the BGB are scheduled from .

Rajnath Singh reaffirms strengthening bilateral ties with Maldives

He emphasised the enduring spiritual, historical, linguistic, and ethnic ties between the nations

Rajnath Singh to meet Maldivian counterpart for high-level defence talks

The visit included high-level discussions and the signing of key agreements to advance development cooperation, marking a significant step in strengthening the bilateral ties between the two nations

India, Maldives to hold high-level defence talks to boost ties on Wednesday

Maldivian Defence Minister Mohammed Ghassan Maumoon will pay a three-day visit to India from Wednesday to deepen bilateral engagement ties amid a thaw in relations between the two countries. Maumoon will hold wide-ranging talks with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh besides meeting several senior officials in the national capital. The visit by the Maldivian minister comes over eight months after India withdrew its military personnel from the island nation following a demand by its pro-China president Mohamed Muizzu Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will hold a bilateral meeting with Maumoon in New Delhi on January 8, the defence ministry said. It said the two ministers will review the various facets of bilateral defence cooperation, including training, exercises and defence projects to enhance the capability of the Maldives National Defence Forces as well as supply of defence equipment. "The Maldives occupies a special place in India's 'Neighbourhood First' policy, which aims to bring .

Maldives a concrete expression of India's 'neighbourhood first' policy: EAM

The Maldives is a "very concrete" expression of India's neighbourhood first policy and New Delhi has always stood by the island nation, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said while hosting his Maldivian counterpart Abdulla Khaleel for talks. In his opening remarks at the meeting, Jaishankar noted the finalisation of a framework to promote the use of local currencies for cross border trade between India and Maldives besides listing New Delhi's financial assistance to Male to help it deal with economic stress. Both sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding for implementation of high impact community development projects under phase-III in Maldives through grant assistance from India. In his comments, Khaleel reaffirmed President Mohamed Muizzu's firm commitment to work closely with New Delhi in realising the joint vision for India-Maldives comprehensive economic and maritime security partnership. Khaleel arrived here on Thursday on a three-day visit to explore ways to bolster .

'Compulsive hostility': Govt rejects Washington Post's Maldives report

India on Friday strongly trashed two recent reports published by the Washington Post -- one linking New Delhi to a failed plot to impeach Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu and another on Indian agents allegedly attempting to eliminate certain terror elements in Pakistan. Dismissing the reports, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the newspaper and the reporter in question appear to nurse a "compulsive hostility" towards India. In its report on the Maldives, the Post, citing a document titled "Democratic Renewal Initiative", claimed that opposition politicians proposed bribing 40 members of Parliament, including those from Muizzu's own party, to vote to impeach him. After months of secret talks, the plotters failed to gather enough votes to impeach the president, it said. "Both the newspaper and the reporter in question appear to nurse a compulsive hostility towards India. You can see a pattern in their activities. I leave you to judge their ...

Maldives foreign minister Abdulla Khaleel begins 3-day visit to India

Maldives Foreign Minister Abdulla Khaleel arrived here on Thursday on a three-day visit to explore ways to bolster bilateral ties in several key areas including maritime security, trade and investment. Khaleel's trip to India comes nearly three months after Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu visited India. On Friday, the Maldivian foreign minister will hold wide-ranging talks with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar covering almost all aspects of India-Maldives ties. "Working towards India-Maldives joint vision of a 'Comprehensive Economic & Maritime Security Partnership'. Warm welcome to FM @abkhaleel of Maldives on his first official visit to India," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on 'X'. The Maldives is one of India's key maritime neighbours in the Indian Ocean Region and the overall bilateral ties including in areas of defence and security witnessed an upward trajectory under the previous government in Male. The ties between India and the Maldives .

Ex-Maldives Prez dismisses report of India's hand in 'plot' against Muizzu

The former Maldives president stated he was unaware of any 'serious plot' against President Muizzu and added that India would never support such a move

India, Maldives ink pact for cross-border transactions in local currencies

The MoU was signed by Shaktikanta Das, governor, RBI, and Ahmed Munawar, governor, Maldives Monetary Authority