Indian Navy to open strategic base near Maldives

The Indian Navy said it was beefing up its presence on “strategically important” islands near the Maldives, with a new base to be opened in Male just days before it begins repatriating Indian troops.

Relations between India and the Maldives have soured since pro-China President Mohamed Muizul won elections last year on a pledge to expel Indian troops.

India is suspicious of China’s growing presence in the archipelago nation that straddles major international shipping lanes from east to west, and the new base will expand New Delhi’s “operational surveillance” of the region, the Indian Navy said in a statement late Saturday.

Muizou has asked India to withdraw 89 security personnel stationed in the Maldives operating reconnaissance aircraft. The first batch will be evacuated before March 10, and all of them will be evacuated within two months.

According to an Indian Navy statement, the new base will be opened on March 6 in India’s Lakshadweep Islands and will convert an existing small detachment into an “independent naval force”.

India’s Lakshadweep Islands are about 130 kilometers north of the Maldives, and the new naval base on Minicoi is the closest.

The Indian Navy already has a base at Kavarati Island in the Lakshadweep Islands, but the new base will be about 258 kilometers away from the Maldives.

“Minikoi is the southernmost island in the Lakshadweep group and straddles important sea lines of communication,” the navy said.

The base will enhance counter-piracy and counter-narcotics operations and is part of a policy to “progressively strengthen security infrastructure on strategically important islands,” the statement said.