India Maldives

India signed 50 million defence agreement with Maldives to boost maritime capability.

Overview of India-Maldives relations

• Economic relations
• India is Maldives’ 4th largest trade partner
• Greater Make Connectivity Project in Make by India
• Defence Cooperation
• Operation Cactus (1988) Indian Troops prevented a coup in Maldives
• India provides training opportunities for Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF), meeting around 70% of their defence training requirements
• Indian Army and MDNF Exercise Ekuverin (‘Friends’) since 2009.
• Development Assistance
• India Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital, Maldives Institute of Technical Education, Construction of National Police Academy etc
• Grants for projects under High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDPs): such as ambulances, Convention Centre, drug rehabilitation centre, police station upgradation etc
• large-scale assistance in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and during the 2014 Male water crisis under Operation Neer.
• People to people relations
• Indians are the second largest expatriate community in the Maldives.
• India offers scholarships to Maldivian students such as: Indian Council for Cultural Relations scholarships, SAARC Chair Fellowship etc
• India Cultural Center (ICC) in Male courses in yoga, classical music and dance. Also, Hindi commercial films, TV serials and music are immensely popular in Maldives
• In 2019, Indian PM was conferred Maldives’ highest honour —Rule of Nishan Izzuddeen.
• new connectivity measures to help deal with the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
• An “air bubble agreement” for travel, a direct ferry service and a submarine cable for telecom connectivity
• US $500 million assistance for the Greater Male Connectivity project (GMCP) to connect Male to three neighbouring islands - Villingili, Thilafushi and Gulhifahu islands.
• US $400 million Line of Credit (LoC) in addition to a previous LoC of $800 million of 2018. 
• Strategic Importance of Maldives
• close proximity to the west coast of India and its potential to allow a third nation’s naval presence in the area
• situated at the hub of commercial sea-lanes running through the Indian Ocean. More than 97% of India’s international trade by volume and 75% by value passes through the region
• India’s ambition to be ‘Net-security provider’ in Indian Ocean region calls for close military and naval ties with Maldives so that India protects its own interests as well of its neighbours
• China is rapidly expanding its footprint in the Maldives. Thus, it becomes geo-politically and strategically important for India to maintain its presence in Maldives.

Challenges in India-Maldives Relations

• Maldives’ reliance on China to develop infrastructure projects and the resulting accumulation of foreign debt— 40 per cent of the country’s GDP- Chinese debt-trap diplomacy
• Political instability in Maldives as democracy is yet to take a firm footing will have impact on India’s relations. E.g. in 2012 Maldives announced termination of a USD 511 million project with the Indian infrastructure company GMR Infrastructure Limited.
• challenged overall security of the Indian Ocean by increasing radicalisation —over 200 Maldivians reportedly joined the Islamic State —and by the granting of non-transparent permissions for foreign investment.
• India’s vote against Maldives in a bid to secure non permanent membership in UNSC in 2018
• Concerns of workers denial of work permits as in 2018

Way Forward

• enhance regional cooperation by using common platforms such as the Indian Ocean RIM Association and Indian Ocean Naval Symposium.
  ‘India-First Policy’ of the Maldives and India’s ‘Neighbourhood First Policy’ are intuitively complementary, implementing these policies with strategic sensitivity is of the utmost importance.
• Anti terrorism cooperation
• Fast track project delivery
• Gujral Doctrine for neighbourhood relations

India’s outreach to Indian Ocean Nations during COVID-19 pandemic

• India launched Mission Sagar to provide assistance to Indian Ocean Region Nations.
• INS Kesari was dispatched for Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoros, to provide food Items, COVID related medicines.
• Prime Ministers vision of Security and Growth for All in the Region ‘SAGAR’
• in 2015 envisages collective action and cooperation to advance peace and security and respond to emergencies.