Maldives President visits India, Muizzu reaches Delhi, will meet PM Modi
New Delhi| Maldives President Mohammed Muizzu arrived in New Delhi on Sunday afternoon on a five-day state visit. He has come to India on the invitation of President Draupadi Murmu. During his first bilateral visit, Muizzu will hold high-level meetings with President Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior officials of the Government of India. According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the President of Maldives will also visit Mumbai and Bengaluru with a high-level delegation from his country, where he will attend business events.
This visit of Muizzu holds great importance because India-Maldives relations have been full of ups and downs in recent times. However, for some time now the President of Maldives has been continuously making such statements which show that he wants to maintain strong relations with India. On 15 August Mohammad Muijju praised the ‘invaluable partnership’ between the two neighboring countries in his greeting messages sent to President Draupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The President of Maldives reiterated his administration’s “full commitment” to strengthening ‘historic and close relations’ between the two neighboring countries. “On the occasion of India’s Independence Day, I extend my hearty greetings to President Draupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the people of India”, Muizzu wrote on X. Our enduring friendship has evolved to promote prosperity and development in the Maldives and the region. I am confident that our partnership will continue to strengthen, leading to mutual prosperity and shared goals
Earlier, during External Affairs Minister Ay Zayankar’s visit to Maldives, Muizzu described India as his ‘closest ally’ and ‘invaluable partner’. He also expressed ‘deep gratitude’ to PM Modi, the Government of India and the people of India for their ‘generous and sustained assistance’ to Maldives. Muizzu met Foreign Minister (EAM) S. at a ceremony held at the President’s Office. “India has always been the closest ally and invaluable partner, which always helped Maldives in its time of need”, Jaishankar said.
“President Dr. Muizzu is committed to enhancing bilateral relations with the countries playing an important role in the development and growth of Maldives, so as to ensure a dynamic and proactive foreign policy for the country. Discussions will focus on strengthening bilateral cooperation and further enhancing long-term relations between the two countries”
“This visit reflects the importance India attaches to its relations with Maldives”, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said during the weekly media briefing in New Delhi on Friday afternoon. This is expected to further accelerate cooperation between the two countries and stronger people-to-people ties.
