Jaishankar, Maldives Speaker Nasheed hold talks in New Delhi

External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar held talks with Maldives Speaker Mohamed Nasheed in New Delhi on Monday.

External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar held talks with Maldives Speaker Mohamed Nasheed in New Delhi on Monday. Both leaders discussed regional and global developments.

"Good to meet Speaker of Maldives' Majlis @MohamedNasheed in New Delhi. Discussed regional and global developments," Jaishankar tweeted. This visit comes a few weeks after Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih paid an official visit to India at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,

Earlier this month, President Solih came to India, accompanied by a high-level official and business delegation. During the visit, President Solih held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Besides official engagements in New Delhi, President Solih held talks with an Indian business delegation in Delhi.

During this visit, President Solih also visited Mumbai, Maharashtra and participate in business events. Maldives is India's key neighbour in the Indian Ocean Region and occupies a special place in India's Neighbourhood First Policy. In recent years, the partnership has witnessed rapid growth in all areas of cooperation.

Solih's recent visit gave the countries the opportunity to review the progress made in this wide-ranging partnership and lend further momentum to it. For India, the Maldives has always been a close and important maritime neighbour. Multifaceted ties between the two countries have strengthened despite the pandemic-related disruptions.

India's "Neighborhood First" policy and Maldives's "India First" policy work in tandem to tackle shared concerns and advance mutual interests. Back in March, President Solih highlighted the positive role played by India in the country's affairs in the last two years.

In a national address, Solih thanked the Indian government for its role in helping his country cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, including giving vaccines. Solih mentioned several friendly bilateral partners. However, he singled out New Delhi for assisting the Maldives' COVID-19 response efforts. (ANI)

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