Economy, foreign policy are key priorities in first 100 days in office, says Maldives’ President-elect Muizzu

One of his campaign promises rested heavily on a so-called “India Out” campaign, a call for India to get its military troops out of the country.

Despite that promise, Dr Muizzu told CNA that India will continue to be a “close friend” of the Maldives. 

“We will have a close relationship… We have close ties, historical ties between the two countries. India is our closest neighbour,” he said, adding that the number of Indian military personnel in the Maldives is unclear.

“The people of Maldives have very clearly spoken during this campaign, that they have given me a mandate of removing foreign military presence from the Maldives. Whether it’s India or any other country, it doesn’t matter to us.”

Dr Muizzu, who has been engaging with the Indian government, said the removal of foreign troops is a matter of national security, but noted that Maldives still needs foreign assistance to strengthen its military.