Maldives President Shifts Tone on India Cooperation

Mohamed Muizzu, the current president of Maldives, won the country's highest office in 2023 on the back of the "India Out" campaign. During this campaign, Muizzu called for the removal of Indian military personnel stationed on the island. Three years later, in 2026, Muizzu is praising an infrastructure project underway in collaboration with New Delhi and calling it a symbol of "closer and stronger ties between Maldives and India." This is a big change for Muizzu, who became president for the first time. The already good relations between New Delhi and Male soured as soon as Muizzu became president. India continues to be not only the largest source of economic support for the Indian Ocean island nation, but also oversees one of the most important infrastructure projects in Maldives. Muizzu's recent remarks came during an inspection of the under-construction Thilamale Bridge. A press release from the President's Office of the Republic of Maldives quoted Muizzu as saying this during a special media briefing on New Delhi and Male Engineers'National Day.