Longstanding gaps in military capacity development, stemming from previous administrations, had contributed to the country’s vulnerability to past terrorist and violent attacks, the Minister of Defence, Mohamed Ghassan Maumoon has said.
Addressing a ceremony held to mark the 133rd Anniversary of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) on Monday evening, Minister Ghassan said the effort to protect the country’s independence and sovereignty initiated by incumbent President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has been long overdue.
The volatility and dangers of the divided world we live in, the country had been crying out for such investments in the military for the past 15 years, he said.
The Minister said the negligence of successive governments during these 15 years had led to vicious attacks to undermine Maldives’ sovereignty and independence.
"This negligence has led to direct terrorist activities on this soil. Over the past 10 years, the country's leaders have been targeted for such attacks because successive governments had prioritised other things over the sovereignty and independence of this nation," he said.
The most recent attack on Maldivian soil was the attempt to assassinate former President Mohamed Nasheed in 2021.
Nasheed who was serving as the Speaker of the Parliament at the time, was severely injured after an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attached to a motorcycle was triggered while he was getting in his car on the night of 6 May 2021. The attack left Nasheed with serious injuries, requiring multiple life-saving surgeries at ADK Hospital in Male’ and additional medical treatment in Germany and the United Kingdom (UK).
The blatant security breach of arguably the most high profile political leader in the country at the time raised serious questions over Nasheed’s security detail and intelligence agencies of both the military and the Police.
Minister Ghassan said such attacks were made possible by the severe lack of investment in the capacity of the country’s security forces, adding the President Dr Muizzu’s Administration had taken proactive steps to right this wrong.
He noted that President Dr Muizzu had initiated several initiatives to ensure extensive advancements across all defence sectors, including military equipment, surveillance capabilities, training facilities and increased operational capacity to ensure preparedness for evolving security challenges.