New Delhi: Four months after his last trip to India, Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu is set to return for an official visit, his spokesperson announced on Tuesday (September 10).
Muizzu had previously visited India in June to attend the swearing-in ceremony for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s third term after the general elections.
The invitation to him was notable as it came shortly after India withdrew all its uniformed personnel operating three aircraft donated to the Maldives, replacing them with civilian technical staff.
At a press conference in the Maldivian capital on Tuesday, the president’s chief spokesperson Heena Waleed said, “The president is scheduled to visit India very soon. Discussions are ongoing between [the] Maldives and India to finalise the most suitable date.”
No further details were provided about the trip, though it is expected to take place this month.
Earlier in the day, Maldivian media reported that two deputy ministers, Mariyam Shiuna and Malsha Shareef, had resigned after being suspended with pay for the past eight months over their derogatory tweets about Modi.
The Maldivian government suspended them in January following a social media campaign led by Indian influencers calling for a boycott of the Maldives as a tourist destination due to the offensive posts.
A third deputy minister, Mahzoom Majid, was also suspended for a similar offense but remains in his position, according to the Adhadhu media outlet.
Muizzu defeated incumbent Ibrahim Solih in November’s presidential election after running a campaign that criticised the government’s close ties with India.
Shortly after assuming office, the Maldivian president requested India to withdraw its military personnel stationed in the archipelago, who had been operating three aircraft for search and rescue missions.
Following negotiations, India replaced the uniformed staff with civilian personnel from a public sector company, with the last Indian soldier departing Malé by May 10.
In the meantime, the Maldivian president selected China for one of his first visits abroad. His government also notified India that the hydrography agreement between the two countries would not be renewed.
Relations appeared to begin normalising following the visit of Maldivian foreign minister Moosa Zameer in May.
After Muizzu was invited to attend India’s oath-taking ceremony, Indian external affairs Minister S. Jaishankar visited the Maldives in August – marking the first trip by a senior Indian official since Muizzu’s election.
During the visit, Muizzu reiterated his commitment to “strengthening historic” ties with India, referring to the nation as “one of our closest allies and invaluable partners”.
