Maldives signs defense deal with Beijing, Indian troops close to departure. The 89 Indian soldiers present in the country will have left by May 10 after being ordered to leave.
Since the election of the pro-Chinese president, Mohamed Muizzu, relations have cooled with New Delhi. India is wary of China's growing presence in the Indian Ocean and its influence in the Maldives, as well as neighboring Sri Lanka, two South Asian island nations that occupy a strategic position midway major international east-west shipping routes.