After departing from convention in picking Turkey, and, not India, for his first official visit, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu, accompanied by First Lady Sajidha Mohamed, will undertake a state visit to China from January 7-12.
Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu has conveyed the Indian government's assurance to honour and respect the desire of the Maldivian people to abstain from accommodating foreign military presence within the country.
During his visit, Mohamed Muizzu is scheduled to hold a meeting with Turkey's senior government officials to explore potential areas for mutual collaboration and enhance the diplomatic ties between the two nations.
However, Nasheed also expressed that he sees it as an opportunity for the Indian establishment to establish stronger links with the new government as well.
Earlier in August, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and then Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih launched the 'Greater Male connectivity projects in the Maldives' and also entered pacts in areas like cyber security, disaster management, and police infrastructure development.
Earlier on Friday, Maldivian President-elect Mohamed Muizzu took the oath as the eighth President of the Maldives, said the Maldives President's Office in a press statement.
Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu on Saturday met Union Minister of Earth Sciences Kiren Rijiju and "formally requested" the Indian government to withdraw its military personnel from the Maldives
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju called on Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu and reiterated India's commitment to further strengthen bilateral cooperation and people-to-people ties between the two countries.
India has received an invitation for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the oath-taking ceremony of Maldives president-elect Mohamed Muizzu, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday.
Taking to X, the Indian envoy shared details about the meeting, posting, "Pleasure to call on President-elect H.E. @MMuizzu & Vice President-elect H.E @HucenSembe Handed over a congratulatory message from Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi. Look forward to building on our productive di