Maldives President Muizzu meets PM Modi today, says India aware of fiscal situation, will ease burden

Muizzu reached New Delhi Sunday on his first bilateral State visit — he was here four months ago to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the third Modi government. He was received at the airport by Minister of State (External Affairs) Kirti Vardhan Singh. During his five-day visit — from October 6 to 10 — he will also travel to Agra, Mumbai and Bengaluru.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar called on President Muizzu and, in a post on X, said “appreciate his commitment to enhance” the relationship between India and Maldives. He said he was confident that the President’s talks with the Prime Minister on Monday “will give a new impetus to our friendly ties”.

On Sunday, Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in New Delhi. (PTI)

Earlier, extending “a warm welcome” to the President, Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, said, “The visit will provide further boost to this long-standing comprehensive bilateral partnership.”

President Muizzu and First Lady Sajidha Mohamed, Jaiswal said, are on a State visit at the invitation of President Droupadi Murmu. “The official welcoming ceremony will take place tomorrow. A high-level government delegation accompanies the President and First Lady,” he said.

In remarks before his departure for New Delhi, Muizzu outlined the primary goal of the visit.

“India is fully cognisant of our fiscal situation, and as one of our biggest development partners, will always be ready to ease our burden, find better alternatives and solutions to the challenges we face,” Muizzu told the BBC in an email interview ahead of the visit.

India has already offered financial support worth $1.4 billion to Male for various infrastructure and development projects.

The Maldives is looking at a debt default as its foreign exchange reserves have dropped to $440m (£334m), just enough for one-and-a-half months of imports.

Last month, global agency Moody’s downgraded the Maldives’ credit rating, saying that “default risks have risen materially”.

However, Muizzu told the BBC that Male was not facing a sovereign debt default, adding that the country would not join an International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme to handle the crisis. “We have our home-grown agenda,” he said.

However, Moody has said, “(foreign) reserves remain significantly below the government’s external debt service of around $600m in 2025 and over $1bn in 2026”.

His visit is significant since India and Maldives witnessed a slide in bilateral ties after Muizzu assumed office last year. Soon after coming to power, he asked India to withdraw its military personnel.

The two countries then agreed that India would pull out its 80-odd military personnel stationed in the Maldives between March 10 and May 10. The Ministry of External Affairs said that two helicopters and a Dornier aircraft in the Maldives would be operated by “competent Indian technical personnel” who would replace the “present personnel”.

After the replacement of personnel was completed, Maldives Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer visited New Delhi in May this year. A month later, Muizzu attended Modi’s swearing-in ceremony. And in August, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar went to Male to discuss all areas of bilateral cooperation.

Speaking to the BBC, Muizzu did not directly address his anti-India campaign but said: “We are confident that any differences can be addressed through open dialogue and mutual understanding.” This was a reiteration of the reconciliatory tone of his statements – in New York last week, on the issue of pursuing an anti-India agenda, Muizzu said: “We have never been against any one country at any point. It’s not ‘India Out’. Maldives faced a serious problem with a foreign military presence on its soil. The people of Maldives do not want a single foreign soldier in the country.”

“I have made clear our foreign policy the day I took office – that it is a ‘Maldives First’ policy. Our relationships with other nations are guided by the principles of mutual respect and trust, non-interference and the pursuit of peace and prosperity,” he said.

“We believe that through open communication and collaboration, we can address any concerns, contributing to a peaceful and prosperous Indian Ocean region,” he said, reflecting the nuanced tone – and significant shift from his strident anti-India position.

Early this year, after his bilateral visit to China, Muizzu had targeted India by calling it a bully without naming it. “We might be a small country, but that does not give you the licence to bully us,” he had said.

But ahead of the Delhi visit, he said, “I believe both the Maldives and India have a better understanding of each other’s priorities and concerns.”

The Ministry of External Affairs said Muizzu will meet President Draupadi Murmu and hold discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on bilateral, regional, and international issues of mutual interest.

It said Maldives is “India’s key maritime neighbour in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and holds a special place in Prime Minister’s vision of ‘SAGAR’ (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and India’s ‘Neighbourhood First Policy’.”

“The visit of President Muizzu to India after the recent visit of the External Affairs Minister to the Maldives is testimony to the importance that India attaches to its relations with the Maldives and is expected to lend further momentum to cooperation and robust people-to-people ties between the two countries,” the MEA said.