Importance of Maldives for India
• Strategically located in the Indian Ocean, Maldives archipelago comprising 1,200 coral islands lies next to key shipping lanes which ensure uninterrupted energy supplies to countries like China, Japan and India.
• As the pre-eminent South Asian power and a
'net security provider' in the Indian Ocean region, India needs to cooperate with Maldives in security and defence sectors.
• India was among the first to recognise Maldives after its independence in 1965 and to establish diplomatic relations with the country.
• Indians are the second largest expatriate community in the Maldives with approximate strength of around 26,000. Indian expatriate community consists of workers as well as professionals.
• Indian Army's 'Operation Cactus' foiled a coup in Maldives that was attempted by a pro-Eelam group in 1988.
• India maintains a naval presence in Maldives, at the request of the Maldives, since 2009.
Chance for India
• At the moment, India maintains excellent rapport with opposition parties and enjoys wide approval among Maldivian society for its positive role, particularly in the last one year that witnessed a 45- day emergency in February and widespread repression by the incumbent government.
• Delhi seems to have learned a lesson from its bitter experience during the undeclared blockade in Nepal which caused much damage to its goodwill among the Nepalese population.
Involvement of China in Maldives
• Two nations signed 12 pacts, including a free trade agreement (FTA) and endorsed China’s ambitious Maritime Silk Road initiative. Maldives became the second country in South Asia, after Pakistan, to enter into an FTA with China.
• With China owning 70 per cent of the country's debt, the Maldives is now into serious debt trap.
• Maldives signed China's Belt and Road Initiative, changed laws to lease out several prime islands to China, and allowed Beijing to build an observation post in Makunudhoo, the westernmost atoll, not far from India.
• Chinese companies were given contracts for several infrastructure projects in the Maldives, including the recently inaugurated Sinamale Bridge linking Male to Hulhule Island, and a 1,000-apartment housing project on Hulhumale, a suburb that Beijing built on reclaimed land.
• The Sri Lankan experience should remind India that given its economic and strategic heft, China will continue to be an influential player in the region, including in the Maldives. Rather than getting obsessive about keeping China out of this strategic archipelago of the Indian Ocean, India should work with other powers, particularly the United States (US) and European Union to ensure that the Maldives’ transition to democracy remains on smooth course.
• India can move forward with confidence and circumspection to mend the battered bilateral relations with
Maldives.
• Strategically located in the Indian Ocean, Maldives archipelago comprising 1,200 coral islands lies next to key shipping lanes which ensure uninterrupted energy supplies to countries like China, Japan and India.
• As the pre-eminent South Asian power and a
'net security provider' in the Indian Ocean region, India needs to cooperate with Maldives in security and defence sectors.
• India was among the first to recognise Maldives after its independence in 1965 and to establish diplomatic relations with the country.
• Indians are the second largest expatriate community in the Maldives with approximate strength of around 26,000. Indian expatriate community consists of workers as well as professionals.
• Indian Army's 'Operation Cactus' foiled a coup in Maldives that was attempted by a pro-Eelam group in 1988.
• India maintains a naval presence in Maldives, at the request of the Maldives, since 2009.
Chance for India
• At the moment, India maintains excellent rapport with opposition parties and enjoys wide approval among Maldivian society for its positive role, particularly in the last one year that witnessed a 45- day emergency in February and widespread repression by the incumbent government.
• Delhi seems to have learned a lesson from its bitter experience during the undeclared blockade in Nepal which caused much damage to its goodwill among the Nepalese population.
Involvement of China in Maldives
• Two nations signed 12 pacts, including a free trade agreement (FTA) and endorsed China’s ambitious Maritime Silk Road initiative. Maldives became the second country in South Asia, after Pakistan, to enter into an FTA with China.
• With China owning 70 per cent of the country's debt, the Maldives is now into serious debt trap.
• Maldives signed China's Belt and Road Initiative, changed laws to lease out several prime islands to China, and allowed Beijing to build an observation post in Makunudhoo, the westernmost atoll, not far from India.
• Chinese companies were given contracts for several infrastructure projects in the Maldives, including the recently inaugurated Sinamale Bridge linking Male to Hulhule Island, and a 1,000-apartment housing project on Hulhumale, a suburb that Beijing built on reclaimed land.
• The Sri Lankan experience should remind India that given its economic and strategic heft, China will continue to be an influential player in the region, including in the Maldives. Rather than getting obsessive about keeping China out of this strategic archipelago of the Indian Ocean, India should work with other powers, particularly the United States (US) and European Union to ensure that the Maldives’ transition to democracy remains on smooth course.
• India can move forward with confidence and circumspection to mend the battered bilateral relations with
Maldives.
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