Following a successful diplomatic visit to the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Narendra Modi departed for the Maldives on Thursday, kicking off the second leg of his two-nation tour. Modi's visit signals a major diplomatic reset between India and the island.
Modi is visiting the Maldives at President Mohamed Muizzu's invitation from July 25 to 26. He will also be the chief guest at the Maldives's 60th Independence Day celebrations in the capital, Malé, on Friday.
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The visit can be termed as significant as it marks the first high-level exchange between the two countries since Muizzu's election in 2023, which saw a visible shift in Malé's foreign policy orientation.
The two leaders are also expected to hold bilateral talks focusing on strategic cooperation, economic partnership, and maritime security.
PM Modi's Maldives visit: Key agenda
During his visit to the Maldives, Modi will hold extensive talks with President Mohamed Muizzu and inaugurate several India-assisted development projects in the island nation, the external affairs ministry said.
{{/usCountry}}During his visit to the Maldives, Modi will hold extensive talks with President Mohamed Muizzu and inaugurate several India-assisted development projects in the island nation, the external affairs ministry said.
{{/usCountry}}"The prime minister's state visit also happens to be the first state visit of a head of government that President Muizzu is hosting in his presidency since he assumed office in November 2023," Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said.
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According to Misri, the India-Maldives Joint Vision for a Comprehensive Economic and Maritime Security Partnership, finalised last year, remains a key framework — and developments on this front are likely during the visit.
Apart from this, various MOUs will be signed between India and the Maldives during PM Modi's trip to the Island nation, G Balasubramanian, High Commissioner of India to Maldives said.
"We would be having bilateral meetings at the level of Prime Minister and President both at the Presidency, followed by various MOUs that would be signed and various projects that have been done under the Indian support whether it is in terms of line of credit or buyer's credit or grants, those projects, many of them would be handed over or inaugurated. On the next day, there would be other meetings, and in the evening, there are the Independence Day celebrations, which our Prime Minister is attending as the guest of honour, after which the visit should conclude," he said.
The Prime Minister's visit to the Maldives is being seen as a crucial step toward resetting ties between the two countries, which had come under serious strain after President Mohamed Muizzu — widely viewed as leaning towards China — took office in November 2023.