• Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu has asked India to withdraw its military personnel from his country by March 15.

• According to the latest government figures, there are 88 Indian military personnel in the Maldives.

• Maldives and India have set up a High-Level Core Group to negotiate the withdrawal of troops.

• The first meeting of the India-Maldives High-Level Core Group was held in Male on January 14.

• During the meeting, both sides held discussions on wide-ranging issues related to bilateral cooperation towards identifying steps to enhance the partnership, including expediting the implementation of ongoing development cooperation projects.

• Both sides also held discussions on finding mutually workable solution to enable continued operation of Indian aviation platforms that provide humanitarian and medevac services to the people of Maldives.

• Soon after taking oath as the President of Maldives on November 17 last year, Muizzu formally requested India to withdraw its military personnel from his country.

• The request for the withdrawal of Indian military personnel comes amid a diplomatic row between the two nations in the backdrop of derogatory comments posted by three deputy ministers of the Muizzu government against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

• Muizzu suspended the three ministers after their social media postings, which stirred concern in India and calls for a boycott by Indian tourists who ranked highest in numbers followed by Russia.

India-Maldives relations

• Maldives’ proximity to the west coast of India (it is barely 70 nautical miles away from Minicoy and 300 nautical miles away from India’s West coast), and its situation at the hub of commercial sea‐lanes running through Indian Ocean imbues it with significant strategic importance to India.

• India and Maldives share ethnic, linguistic, cultural, religious and commercial links. Both the nations enjoy close, cordial and multidimensional relations based on shared values of democratic virtues, peaceful coexistence and rule of law.

• India was among the first to recognise Maldives after its independence in 1965 and to establish diplomatic relations with the country.

• India’s prompt assistance during the 1988 coup attempt, led to development of trust and long-term and friendly bilateral relations with the Maldives.

• Both the countries are key players in maintaining safety and security of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

• Maldives occupies a very special place in the ‘Neighborhood First Policy’ and the SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) vision of the government of India.

• ‘India First’ has been a stated policy of the government of Maldives and President Solih, ever since he assumed office in November 2018. 

• Bilateral cooperation with Maldives includes the creation of people-friendly infrastructure – housing, water and sanitation, health and education, ports, roads and stadiums. It also includes maritime security, connectivity and people to people exchanges.

Defence: Since 1988, defence and security has been a major area of cooperation between India and Maldives. India has been assisting Maldives in capacity building by meeting its requirements of defence training and equipment. India provides the largest number of training opportunities for Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF), meeting around 70 per cent of their defence training requirements. A comprehensive Action Plan for Defence was also signed in April 2016 to consolidate defence partnership.

Trade: India and Maldives signed a trade agreement in 1981, which provides for export of essential commodities. India emerged as Maldives’ third largest trade partner in 2021. India‐Maldives bilateral trade crossed the $300-million mark for the first time in 2021, which further crossed $500 million mark in 2022. India emerged as Maldives’ second largest trade partner in 2022. Indian imports from the Maldives primarily comprise scrap metals while Indian exports to the Maldives include a variety of engineering and industrial products like drugs and pharmaceuticals, radar apparatus, rock boulders, aggregates, cement and agriculture produce like rice, spices, fruits, vegetables and poultry produce, etc. 

To further ease export and import, in July 2021, India’s Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and Maldives Customs Service (MCS) signed a MoU on Pre-arrival exchange of cargo data. The direct cargo vessel service between India and Maldives started in September 2020 continued its voyages and assisted in keeping the prices low for Maldivian consumers at a time of disruption in supply lines. 

Tourism: The Maldivian economy is heavily dependent on its tourism sector, which is the major source of foreign exchange earnings and government revenue. Tourism directly accounts for about a quarter of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Maldives and indirectly for a much larger proportion of GDP. In terms of direct employment, tourism accounts for more than a third of job opportunities for Maldivians and if the allied sectors are included, the contribution of tourism sector in total employment (direct and indirect) would rise up to nearly 70 per cent. Implementation of visa-free entry in February 2022 for Indians arriving in the Maldives for business purposes is a further recognition of the growing commercial partnership. In 2022, India with 2.41 lakh tourists arrivals continues to be the leading source market for Maldives with a 14.4 per cent market share. In March 2022, India and Maldives agreed for an open skies arrangement which will further improve connectivity between two countries.

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