President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has said Maldives wishes to have a greater voice in regional affairs. The president made the remark while speaking at the video conference held today to exchange agreements with the Government of India on four key projects in Maldives.
Speaking on the four agreements that were exchanged today, President Solih said the agreements are occurring within a broader context of the deeper and more frequent diplomatic engagement of Maldives with the Indian Ocean as a whole. The president said Maldives wishes to have a greater voice in regional affairs, as one of the newest members of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA). He said he looks forward to working with the Indian government in the near future to strengthen regional collaboration towards maritime security and commercial prosperity in the Indian Ocean Region.
President Solih expressed gratitude to Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, for facilitating the important agreements and said he looks forward to exploring even further avenues to strengthen the bilateral ties between India and the Maldives in the near future. He said the government has always attached the highest priority to our relationship with India, adding he is confident that the relations between the two countries will continue to flourish in the days ahead.
Speaking at the video conference, Prime Minister Modi said this year has been a successful year in developing the ties between Maldives and India, noting successful projects have been conducted as part the ‘Neighbourhood First’ Policy of India and ‘India First’ Policy of Maldives. PM Modi assured India will remain a partner to the development of Maldives.
This is the first time Maldives exchanged bilateral agreements with another country via video conferencing. The agreements exchanged today includes agreements on gifting in-shore patrol vessel CGS Kaamiyaab, establishing neighbourhood fish processing plants in Addu City, acceptance of RuPay Card in Maldives and gifting LED street lamps to Male City.