Hot on the heels of the Maldives’s demand that Indian troops be removed from the island nation, the Cabinet has decided against renewing a 2019 MoU with India for hydrographic surveying, a top official in Malé told The Hindu.
According to Mohamed Shahyb, Chief Spokesperson at President Mohamed Muizzu’s office, the Cabinet recently decided that the MoU, which is due to expire in 2023, will not be renewed. “It’s a decision by the Cabinet,” Mr. Shahyb told The Hindu on Friday, when asked to comment on the reason behind the move.
Following the 2019 agreement, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) and the Indian Navy have carried out three joint hydrographic surveys in February and March 2021, April and May 2022, and in January and February 2023, according to a statement issued by the High Commission of India in Maldives earlier this year, following the latest survey. The surveys “will generate updated Navigational Charts/ Electronic Navigational Charts” that would “enhance the navigational safety of ships and enhance the Blue Economy of Maldives,” the statement said.
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