India And Maldives Hold Their Second Core Group Meeting In Delhi Over Troop Withdrawal

India and the Maldives are holding critical talks on Friday to find a mutually acceptable solution to allow Indian military platforms to continue operating in the island nation.

Following a meeting on the sidelines of the COP28 summit in Dubai in December, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maldivian President Muizzu decided to form the core group.

Last month, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu demanded that India withdraw all of its military forces from the island nation by March 15.

Currently, over 80 Indian military troops are in the Maldives, mostly to operate two helicopters and an aircraft that have conducted hundreds of medical evacuations and humanitarian operations.

Since Muizzu took office in November, relations between the two countries have been strained.

After taking office, Muizzu, widely seen as a pro-China politician, vowed to keep his electoral promise of expelling Indian military personnel from his country.

Muizzu defeated India-friendly incumbent Ibrahim Mohamed Solih in the presidential runoff last September.

The Maldives is one of India’s main maritime neighbors in the Indian Ocean Region and the overall bilateral ties, notably in areas of defence and security, saw an upward trajectory during the former government in Male.

Mohamed Muizzu was sworn in as the new Maldivian president on November 17.

A day after entering office, he ordered the withdrawal of Indian military personnel from the Maldives.

Following the first meeting of the core group on January 14, the Ministry of External Affairs stated that both sides were looking at mutually acceptable solutions to allow the continued operation of Indian aviation platforms that provide humanitarian and medical evacuation services to Maldivians.

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