The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: Edition.mv from Maldives reports that the Chinese research vessel Xiang Yang Hong 03, “which gave rise to much controversy in the region, is currently moored close to Male’ City”. The website cites the Marine Traffic website to say that on Thursday, February 22, “around noon, the ship was shown to be near Thilafushi”.
In a statement on January 23, Maldives’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs had stated that permission for docking had been granted to the ship after receiving a diplomatic request from the government of China for permission to make a port call for the purposes of replenishment and rotation of personnel.
As per Maldivian authorities, the ship will not be conducting any surveys in the Maldives waters even though it would be docked in Maldives’ port. The statement said Maldives has always welcomed both civilian and military vessels from friendly nations to make port calls when necessary.
The Hindu reports that in February, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin had said, “China’s scientific research activities in relevant waters are for peaceful purposes and aimed at contributing to humanity’s scientific understanding of the ocean.” On January 5, Sri Lanka, writes the newspaper, “while denying entry to the Chinese ship, had said it had declared a moratorium on foreign research ships entering its waters for a year amid concerns from India over Chinese research vessels docking in its neighbourhood.”
Trilateral Coast Guard drill
The Hindu writes that the Maldives is India’s key maritime neighbour in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and occupies a special place in SAGAR’ (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and the Neighbourhood First Policy’ of the present government.
On February 22, Coast Guards of Maldives, India, and Sri Lanka, along with observers from Bangladesh, joined in at the Trilateral Joint Exercise ‘DOSTI-16.’ The Deccan Herald reports that even as Malé ignored New Delhi’s concerns and allowed a ‘research vessel’ of China to enter Maldives’ territorial waters India has sent two ships of its coast guard to Maldives for the drill. The two ships of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) are, ICGS Samarth and ICGS Abhinav.
Sri Lanka’s SLNS Samudra is also expected to participate in the biennial drill, on till February 25. The ‘DOSTI’ drill was held for the first time in 1991 by the coast guards of India and the Maldives. Sri Lanka joined it in 2012. Bangladesh would be an observer this time.
India-Maldives: Choppy waters
India’s relationship with Maldives entered choppy waters after the election of Mohamed Muizzu as president. He is perceived to be closer to China than to India and Modi’s visit to Lakshadweep and messaging after that also served to firm up the impression that it was a broadside by India to send a message to its neighbouring archipelago. A recent incident of Indian forces boarding Maldivian boats deepened the crisis.
As The Wire reported, the Maldives opposition too has cornered the Muizzu government for “not doing enough to safeguard the nation’s sovereignty after Indian forces boarded Maldivian boats”. This happened even as the president announced in parliament that the Indian military will start to be “withdrawn” from the Indian ocean island nation on March 10 and end in two months.