Maldives: President-elect Muizzu urges foreign troops to leave

President-elect Mohamed Muizzu stated at a rally celebrating his victory in the closely awaited presidential elections over the weekend that are likely to reshape relations with India and China that foreign military personnel cannot remain in the Maldives. A coalition with ties to China is supporting Muizzu, who on Saturday defeated incumbent President Ibrahim Solih in a second-round runoff. Muizzu previously led the “India Out” campaign against a small Indian military contingent. “All the countries which agree to our pro-Maldives policy will be our close friends and allies,” Muizzu told supporters at Monday’s event. “We will send back foreign soldiers in the Maldives,” he added, without naming any country. His party has previously argued that India’s hegemonic power poses a threat to sovereignty, and Muizzu asserted that India wants to maintain a permanent military presence in the Indian Ocean archipelago. India, which has always had close connections to Male, disputes that claim and is assisting in the construction of a naval harbour where its military would train Maldivian forces. Under the condition of anonymity, a senior Indian government official said that New Delhi will “wait and watch” Muizzu’s policies. “He has to work with us, and we have to work with him,” the official added, emphasising that India was “not anti-Maldives”. The proponent of a “India First” strategy, Solih, remains in charge until Muizzu takes office on November 17. (With agency inputs)