Indian Army soldiers (Reuters)

New Delhi began withdrawing its soldiers stationed in the Maldives after the pro-China president of the archipelago asked Indian forces to withdraw from his country, a local newspaper in the capital, Male, reported on Tuesday.

The 89 Indian soldiers are supposed to have left the country by May 10, after being ordered to leave by President Mohamed Moiso, who came to power last year based on an anti-India program.

So far, India has withdrawn 25 of its soldiers stationed on Addu Atoll before the official date for the start of the withdrawal, i.e. March 10, according to the local newspaper “Miharu” on Tuesday.

The newspaper indicated that civilian employees arrived on the island to replace these military personnel in operating 3 reconnaissance aircraft provided by New Delhi to Mali to monitor its vast maritime borders.

The Indian or Maldivian authorities did not officially confirm the information reported by the newspaper, but the latter indicated that the Maldivian forces confirmed the start of the Indian withdrawal.

India is concerned about China's growing presence in the Indian Ocean and its influence in the Maldives, an archipelago consisting of 1,192 small islands extending 800 kilometers across the equator, along with neighboring Sri Lanka.

These two island countries in South Asia are strategically located in the middle of major international shipping routes between East and West.

Chinese support

“We support the Maldives in protecting its territorial sovereignty,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters in Beijing on Tuesday.

He added, "We also support the Maldives in developing friendly exchanges and cooperation with all parties on the basis of its independence and self-government."

Relations between Malé and New Delhi have cooled since Mohamed Moiso won the elections in September 2023. India considers the archipelago in the Indian Ocean to be in its sphere of influence, but the Maldives has chosen to move closer to China, its largest foreign creditor.

Moizo, who visited Beijing in January and signed a number of deals in the infrastructure, energy, maritime and agricultural sectors, denied seeking to redraw the regional balance by bringing in Chinese forces to replace Indian forces.

Last week, the Maldives Ministry of Defense announced that it had signed an agreement with Beijing regarding China’s provision of military assistance, explaining that it aims to strengthen bilateral relations.

Source: French