Defence Minister reaches Maldives on a three day visit

New Delhi: Defence minister Rajnath Singh has reached Mahe in the Maldives on May 1. During the three day visit, he will hold talks with the top leadership of that country.

As per the defence ministry, Singh will hold bilateral talks with his Maldivian counterpart Mariya Ahmed Didi, minister of foreign affairs Abdulla Shahid and he will also call on Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.

In line with India's commitment to capacity building of friendly countries and partners in the region, Singh will hand over one fast patrol vessel and a landing craft to the Maldives National Defence Forces, the ministry said in a statement. The entire gamut of defence relations between the two countries will be reviewed during the deliberations.

According to the Defence Minister, "The Minister's visit will be an important landmark in building the strong bonds of friendship between the two countries."

India and the Maldives are working closely to address shared challenges, including maritime security, terrorism, radicalisation, piracy, trafficking, organised crime and natural disasters.

In 2021, India extended a $50 million line of credit to the Maldives for defence projects and the two countries signed a pact to develop the harbour at Uthuru Thila Falhu. In the absence of a navy, the coast guard functions as the armed maritime component of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF), which has received patrol vessels and maritime surveillance aircraft from India.

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