New Delhi: Maldivian Foreign Minister Moussa Zamir has arrived in India for his first official bilateral visit amid tensions between the two countries.
In a post on X, he expressed his enthusiasm to engage in fruitful discussions, enhance ties between the nations and soak himself in India’s vibrant culture.
Zaheer’s arrival was also declared by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on X saying that they are looking forward to talks on all aspects of bilateral and regional issues as well as ways to strengthen multidimensional links between the two countries.
As per information given by MEA, The foreign minister is also expected to have talks with S Jaishankar about how they can solve common problems affecting them.
“Foreign Minister Maldives’ Mossa Zamir will pay an official visit to India from May 9, 2024” said an MEA statement.
The visit comes against the backdrop of India having promised to withdraw its military personnel from Maldives before May 10th.
On May 3rd, India and Maldives held their fourth round of bilateral high level core group meeting. The government now indicated it would finish replacing Indian troops before the set date. Earlier, Maldivian government led by Mohamed Muizou formally sought for the withdrawal of Indian armed forces from Male’.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Maldives via a Press Release highlights that both sides took stock on existing areas of cooperation which include but not limited to development and defense cooperation. They agreed that the fifth session of high-level core groups would be conducted in Male either during June or July at a mutually convenient date.
Earlier, it was reported that Ministry had informed that first batch technical staff from India arrived in Maldives so as replace defense staffs. An agreement has been reached between India and Maldives whereby they have come up with some workable arrangements which will ensure continued operation of Indian aviation platform located within its boundary giving humanitarian and medical evacuation services to the people of Maldives.
The withdrawal of Indian troops from the Maldives was a key campaign promise of Muizou’s party during the election. Currently, about 70 Indian soldiers are stationed in the Maldives, along with Dornier 228 maritime patrol aircraft and two HAL Dhruv helicopters.
Following this, recent statement by Maldivian Minister of Tourism Ibrahim Faisal urged Indian tourists to continue visiting their archipelago underlining historical relations between the countries.
This appeal by the minister comes at a time when there has been a significant drop in tourist arrivals from India since three senior Maldivian officials made derogatory remarks against India and Prime Minister Modi on social media. In turn, scores of flights have been canceled and after January, India dropped from being rated as top tourism destiny to sixth.
According to sun.mv, compared to last year’s figures for January-March, the number of tourists coming from India decreased by 42% this year.
