It is strange with Maldivian new President Mohamed Muizzu. Blinded by his hatred towards India, he is ready to do what archipelagic country’s former President Abdulla Yameen did during his six-year term from 2013 to 2018: Align closely with China and jeopardise the country’s strategic and economic interests by burdening it with unsustainable loans.
Maldives, which sustains its economy through tourism, officially owes $1.4 billion to China and unofficially closer to $3.5 billion. When the Abdulla Yameen government was in power, Mohamed Muizzu, as a mayor of Male, had reportedly played a key role in making China bankroll funds to Maldives for its infrastructure projects under the contentious Belt and Road Initiative programme.
But on account of unsustainable loans from China, Maldives fell into a deep economic problem in 2018 and it was India which rescued the country from its complete slide into crisis. New Delhi provided financial assistance and undertook massive infrastructure projects. According to the Indian High Commission in Male, New Delhi provided a financial package of $1.4 billion which also included currency swap agreement for $400 million and eight infrastructure projects under the $800 million Line of Credit.
Maldives, which sustains its economy through tourism, officially owes $1.4 billion to China and unofficially closer to $3.5 billion. When the Abdulla Yameen government was in power, Mohamed Muizzu, as a mayor of Male, had reportedly played a key role in making China bankroll funds to Maldives for its infrastructure projects under the contentious Belt and Road Initiative programme
Under President Muizzu, Maldives appears ready to sweep this gesture by India under the carpet; it does not intend to remember the deadly Corona virus of 2020-21 and New Delhi’s swift and unbiased support to it either. Staying the course of its “neighbourhood first” policy, India had chosen to provide Male with Covid-19 vaccines when it was grappling with the Corona virus. Bhutan and Maldives were the first countries to receive Covishield vaccine, manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, in January 2021.
In fact, as a diehard pro-China man, President Muizzu who won election on an anti-India plank, is doing what could please Beijing. A month after he asked India to withdraw its 70 plus armed force personnel stationed in the Indian Ocean archipelago to operate two Dhruv helicopters and a Dornier aircraft gifted by New Delhi to the country for medical evacuation and to counter drug trafficking measures, his government earlier in December decided not to renew a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with India for cooperation in hydrography.
The agreement that was signed on June 8, 2019, will expire on June 7, 2024. The first joint hydrographic survey by the Indian Navy and the Maldivian National Defence Force was carried out by INS Darshak in February/March 2021 and the second one was carried out by INS Sutlej in April/May 2022. The last joint hydrographic survey was carried out by the INS Investigator from January 19 to February 26, 2023. Northern Maldivian areas like Ihavabdhippolhu, Thiladhanmatee atolls and Gallandhu Kandu were surveyed by the INS Investigator.
India has a “proven track record in the field of hydrography” and it has been cooperating with many countries in the Indian Ocean region, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said. While India is not bothered whether Maldives will renew hydrographic agreement or not, it is concerned about China’s possible use of the Maldivian ports to dock its vessels
These hydrographic surveys, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), help in mapping out depth, the shape of the seafloor and coastline, the location of possible obstructions, and physical features of water bodies to ensure the efficiency and safety of maritime transportation.
India has a “proven track record in the field of hydrography” and it has been cooperating with many countries in the Indian Ocean region, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said. While India is not bothered whether Maldives will renew hydrographic agreement or not, it is concerned about China’s possible use of the Maldivian ports to dock its vessels.
China is reportedly planning to send a research survey vessel to a Maldivian port from January 5 to late May 2024 to conduct a deep-water exploration of the South Indian Ocean. The Chinese survey vessel was also planning to dock at the Sri Lankan ports. But after India raised objections, Sri Lanka immediately decided to impose a one-year moratorium starting from January 2024 on allowing foreign vessels to conduct research in the island nation’s territorial waters. However, Maldives has not issued any such moratoriums, or turned down China’s requests on conducting surveys in its waters, indicating its changed behaviour under the new political dispensation.
Rather in its bid to show that it places more importance to maintaining independent foreign policy, the Indian Ocean archipelago is busy in fashioning an approach that is markedly different from the country’s past political and diplomatic traditions. President Muizzu chose to make his first official trip to Ankara, Turkey’s capital, instead of India, a tradition that the country’s every head of government religiously followed since its independence in 1965.
Even former Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen who was though indefatigable in his attempt to play China card against India, he continued with the tradition of visiting New Delhi first after taking office in 2013. Nonetheless, Mohamed Muizzu’s Ankara visit gave a peep into his motive—developing a close rapport with Islamic nations.
Rather in its bid to show that it places more importance to maintaining independent foreign policy, the Indian Ocean archipelago is busy in fashioning an approach that is markedly different from the country’s past political and diplomatic traditions. President Muizzu chose to make his first official trip to Ankara, Turkey’s capital, instead of India, a tradition that the country’s every head of government religiously followed since its independence in 1965
Turkey under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is vying with Saudi Arabia to become a leader of Sunni Islamic nations which are in total more than 40 in the world. But then Turkey is also a country which attacks India on the Jammu and Kashmir issue. By making Turkey the first country of his foreign visit soon after assuming presidential office, Mohamed Muizzu has sent a message to India that it is facilitating Ankara’s move to deepen its engagement with the South Asian region. In June, Turkey rolled out the red carpet to welcome Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. This was the second visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister Hasina to Turkey since April 2012. Recently, Turkish Airlines resumed direct flights to Sri Lanka after a decade.
In spite of all this, India has tried to adopt a balanced approach in its engagement with the archipelago under President Muizzu whose swearing-in ceremony was attended by Kiran Rijiju, a Cabinet-rank minister. Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with the new Maldivian President on the sidelines of the COP 28 in Dubai on December 1. Also, India’s assistance to Maldives in terms of capacity-building continues. Yet the major question is: Will India continue to show its large heartedness towards the Mohamed Muizzu government even as it plays a hard game against New Delhi?
–The writer is a senior journalist with wide experience in covering international affairs. The views expressed are of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda
