Following the second meeting of the high-level core group between India and the Maldives, the Maldivian government has announced that India will replace its military personnel in the Maldives in two phases by May 10. This decision comes in response to Malé’s demand to end the presence of Indian military personnel in the archipelago, a matter complicated by social media controversy over remarks made by three ministers of the Mohamed Muizzu government that were deemed disrespectful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Both sides reached an agreement, stating that the Government of India will replace military personnel on one of the three aviation platforms by March 10, 2024, and complete the replacement of military personnel on the other two platforms by May 10, 2024. However, the statement did not specify whether the military personnel from India would be replaced by civilian operators or another batch of armed forces personnel.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) released a statement indicating that the two sides had agreed on mutually workable solutions to enable the continued operation of Indian aviation platforms providing humanitarian and medevac services to the people of the Maldives. The Maldivian side reiterated the commitment to continuing cooperation in defense and security.
The development comes a day after the revised Indian budget estimates for 2023-’24 allocated a larger financial amount of ₹770.90 crore to the Maldives, creating speculation about India fast-tracking development projects amid bilateral tensions. The Indian statement emphasized expediting the implementation of ongoing development cooperation projects.
Despite these developments, a new controversy has arisen on Maldivian social media over a video allegedly showing Indian Coast Guard (ICG) personnel boarding Maldivian fishing vessels within the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Maldives.
