Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu has asked India to withdraw its military personnel from his country by March 15, a senior official here said on Sunday, nearly two months after Male sought their removal.
1. According to official data, there are 88 Indian military personnel in the Maldives. In a press conference, Public Policy Secretary Abdullah Nazim Ibrahim said that President Muizhu has asked India to withdraw its military personnel by March 15, the SunOnline newspaper reported. “Indian military personnel cannot stay in the Maldives. This is the policy of President Dr Mohamed Muizzu and that of this administration,” he said.
2. Maldives and India have formed a high-level core group to discuss troop withdrawal. The group held its first meeting at the Ministry of External Affairs headquarters on Sunday morning. According to the report, Indian High Commissioner Munu Mahawar was also present. Nazim confirmed the meeting and said that the agenda of the meeting was to request the withdrawal of troops by 15 March.
3. The Indian government did not immediately confirm or comment on the media reports. Shortly after being sworn in as Maldives president on November 17 last year, Mohamed Muizzu, considered a pro-China official, formally requested India to withdraw its military personnel from the country, saying the Maldives had given him a strong mandate. The demand for Indian military withdrawal comes during derogatory remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi by three deputy ministers in the Muizhu government
4. Three ministers are suspended by Mohamed Muizzu after Indian tourists posted on social media to boycott the Maldives and called for a strike. Chinese tourists were in third place. Mujizu, who visited China recently, tried to bring the Maldives closer to Beijing.
5. President Mohamed Muizzu made an indirect attack on India in a media briefing on Saturday after his return from China. “We may be small, but that doesn’t give you the license to bully us”, he said.
6. He also declared plans to reduce the country’s dependence on India and secure imports of essential foodstuffs and medicines and consumables from other countries. “We aren’t in anyone’s backyard. We are an independent and sovereign state,” he said while addressing reporters gathered at Velana International Airport. He said that no country, irrespective of its size, has the right to influence its domestic affairs. He vowed that he would not allow any outside influence in the domestic affairs of the Maldives.
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