Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Special Envoy will attend the inauguration ceremony of the Maldivian President-elect Mohamed Muizzu.
The announcement comes as China increases its influence in India’s neighbourhood, with pro-China Muizzu being elected to power in the Maldives.
Overview
A statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, “At the invitation of Maldivian President-elect Mohamed Muizzu, President Xi Jinping’s Special Envoy and State Councilor Shen Yiqin will visit the Maldives from November 15 to 18 and attend the inauguration ceremony of the new President to be held on November 17 in Malé.”
At the invitation of Maldivian President-elect Mohamed Muizzu, President Xi Jinping’s Special Envoy and State Councilor Shen Yiqin will visit the Maldives from November 15 to 18 and attend the inauguration ceremony of the new President to be held on November 17 in Malé. At the… pic.twitter.com/Mavoct7e8I
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) November 13, 2023
The development is a step in the strengthening Maldives-China relationship, which suffered during the previous President Ibrahim Solih’s rule.
Yiqin is also scheduled to visit Sri Lanka from 18-21 November at the invitation of the Sri Lankan government.
Recent Elections, India Out Campaign
Muizzu emerged victorious in the recently held elections in Maldives, defeating the pro-India incumbent, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.
Muizzu’s victory, expected to have an adverse impact on India’s ties with the Maldives, was heavily shaped by the “India-Out Campaign.”
The India-Out campaign was launched by Muizzu’s party in October 2020, and aimed at removing unarmed Indian personnel stationed in the country at the request of the Maldivian government to train the defence forces of the country.
The campaign came following Solih’s closeness to India, a significant shift from the pro-China stance of his predecessor and Muizzu’s political mentor, Abdulla Yameen, under whom the Maldives entered the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative.
The newly elected Maldivian president’s anti-India credentials were reflected in his election campaign, during which he promised that he would oust any foreign power from the country.
In an interview with BBC in October, Muizzu said that he had met the Indian ambassador a few days after his victory and told him that every Indian military personnel in the archipelago should be removed.
The new president has iterated on several occasions that he would return the Indian military from the shores of Maldives “as soon as possible.”
“The people have told us that they don’t want foreign military here,” he said, mentioning that Maldives wants a bilateral relationship that is mutually beneficial.
India in Maldives
The election results are a major blow to India, which has invested millions of dollars in the country during Solih’s rule to counter China’s endeavours.
The Maldives is India’s key maritime neighbour in the Indian Ocean Region.
Pro-China leader Mohamed Muizzu emerged victorious in the Maldives’ presidential elections, ousting incumbent pro-India President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. Find more:https://t.co/HZpL5vQw36#India #China #Maldives #MohamedMuizzu #IbrahimSolih #Male #IndiaOut
— Statecraft (@statecraftdaily) October 7, 2023
New Delhi has gifted several military assets to the archipelago and has around 75 military personnel with diplomatic immunity positioned in the country.
India is sceptical of the pro-China sentiment in the newly elected ruling dispensation of the country as it feels that China is using the island nation as a part of its “string of pearls” strategy, under which Beijing is said to be strategically encircling the Indian Ocean Region.
The recent election result is expected to prove detrimental to the traditionally strong India-Maldives ties, which have suffered in recent years due to successive pro-Beijing governments, barring the period of Solih’s rule.