India, Maldives hold second caucus meeting on military issues

India and the Maldives will hold key talks on Friday focused on finding mutually workable solutions to enable Indian military platforms to continue operating in the island nation, people familiar with the matter said. The second meeting of the India-Maldives high-level caucus is taking place in Delhi, more than two weeks after the first meeting in Male failed to make any significant progress on the contentious issue.

One of the people cited above said caucus meetings are ongoing and focused on finding a solution acceptable to both parties. In December last year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maldivian President Moezu met during the COP28 summit in Dubai, and the two sides decided to establish a core group.

Last month, Maldives President Mohamed Muizu asked India to withdraw all military personnel from the island nation by March 15. Currently, about 80 Indian military personnel are in the Maldives, mainly operating two helicopters and one aircraft, and have performed hundreds of medical evacuation missions. and humanitarian missions.

Relations between the two countries have faced some tension since Muizou came to power in November. After taking office, Muizu, widely seen as a pro-China leader, insisted that he would keep his election promise to expel Indian military personnel from his country.

Muizou, 45, defeated India-friendly incumbent Ibrahim Mohamed Solih in a presidential runoff last September. The Maldives is one of India’s major maritime neighbors in the Indian Ocean region and overall bilateral relations, including defense and security areas, were on the rise under the previous administration in Male.

Muizu was sworn in as the new president of the Maldives on November 17. A day after taking office as president, he called for the withdrawal of Indian military personnel from the Maldives.

After the first meeting of the core group on January 14, the Ministry of External Affairs said that both parties are seeking mutually feasible solutions to enable the Indian aviation platform to continue operating to provide humanitarian and medical evacuation services to the people of Maldives.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from associated news agency – PTI)