MALE: Indian leader Narendra Modi yesterday inaugurated a coastal radar system and military training centre in the Maldives yesterday, as New Delhi seeks to fend off Chinese influence in the strategically-placed nation. The Maldives, a low-lying archipelago of more than a thousand tiny coral islands south of the Indian subcontinent, straddles the world's busiest east-west maritime route.
India, thecountry's traditional ally, had watched former strongman leader AbdullaYameen's growing political and financial reliance on Beijing with unease. But Yameen's election loss last September hasseen the new administration under President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih gravitateback to the nation's traditional benefactors in New Delhi.
Modi and Solihinaugurated the training facility yesterday, officials said, adding that bothprojects cost New Delhi $26 million. A joint statement said the two sidesdiscussed the need to maintain peace and security in the Indian Ocean region. Theleaders pledged to combat piracy, terrorism, organized crime and traffickingthrough "coordinated patrolling and aerial surveillance, exchange ofinformation, and capacity building," the statement said.
Modi is makinghis second trip to the Maldives in less than seven months. The two-day visit isalso Modi's first foreign visit since taking the oath of office for his secondterm after an emphatic election win in May. Under Modi's leadership, Indiaearlier this year granted a $800 million line of credit to the Maldives, whichremains heavily indebted to Beijing. The Indian premier next travels toneighboring Sri Lanka, where he will hold talks with political leaders during abrief stopover.- AFP