Jaishankar visits Maldives, to witness impact of assistance

MALDIVES: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday arrived in the Maldives on an official visit to witness the impact of the developmental assistance extended through the ever-reliable bilateral partnership.

Jaishankar is on a three-day visit to the Maldives and Sri Lanka beginning to further expand bilateral engagement with the two key maritime neighbours of India.

On reaching the Maldives, Jaishankar was received by Abdulla Shahid, Foreign Minister of Maldives. "India EAM Visit | Welcome to the Maldives my dear friend @DrSJaishankar! And this time to the northernmost atolls, to bear witness the impact of developmental assistance extended through the ever reliable #MaldivesIndiaPartnership," Shahid tweeted along with pictures.

In Maldives, he will sign several agreements to bolster bilateral cooperation. He would call on President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and hold discussions with Foreign Minister Shahid.

The minister's visit to Male will see the signing of agreements related to the bilateral development cooperation, groundbreaking/inauguration/handing-over and launch of a number of key India-supported projects that will contribute to the socio-economic development of the Maldives, the MEA had said in a statement on Tuesday.

The MEA statement said that both the Maldives and Sri Lanka are India's key maritime neighbours in the Indian Ocean Region and occupy a special place in the Prime Minister's vision of 'SAGAR' (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and 'Neighbourhood First'.