Ex-Maldives President Nasheed Calls Indian Troop Withdrawal a Mistake—Will Muizzu Change His Stance

After the start of democratic elections in Maldives, the first President Mohammed Nasheed has said that the decision to remove Indian troops from Maldives was wrong. In an interview given to ABP, he has said that the presence of Indian troops did not pose any threat to the independence of Maldives. He has said that it is important to maintain some degree of Indian military presence for this archipelago in the Indian Ocean to avoid repeating the 1988 incident. Let us tell you that in 1988, an attempt was made to overthrow the Maldives with the help of foreign terrorists, which was foiled by Indian soldiers. At that time, Indian soldiers reached Male and conducted the operation.

Former President Mohammed Nasheed, who recently came to India, while talking to ABP Live said that "his country is still paying a huge debt of 2 billion dollars to China, due to which the country is suffering huge losses." Nasheed, who has left Maldives and become a resident of Ghana, said that the presence of Indian Army in the country is "not a bad idea" and the clear reason behind this is that the Maldives government cannot take the risk of spending heavily on the country's defense."

India got the support of the first President of Maldives

Let us tell you that Mohammed Nasheed won the first democratic election in the year 2008 and became the President of the country. He has been very close to India. During the conversation, he said that "the decision to remove Indian troops from Maldives is not right. The presence of Indian soldiers keeps Maldives safe... When a group of mercenaries attacks, one can think and assume that they will take over the country, as the country has suffered in the year 1988. At that time, Sri Lankan mercenaries attacked Maldives and tried to stage a coup." He further said that "To prevent such an attack, you definitely need to keep your security very strong." Indian soldiers had carried out 'Operation Cactus' in Maldives to prevent the 1988 coup and foiled the coup attempt.

Mohammed Nasheed has also been the speaker of the Maldives Parliament and he has stressed that climate has always been a big challenge for Maldives and most of the money is spent on keeping the climate favorable. Due to this, it becomes difficult for the country to keep its army strong. Huge expenditure cannot be made on the army. Let us tell you that Mohammed Nasheed belonged to the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), which is considered pro-India. This party ruled the Maldives from 2018 to 2023. But in the elections held in late 2023, Mohammed Muizzu won and became the President of the country. Mohammed Yunus defeated Ibrahim Mohammed Solih of MDP. The biggest reason behind the defeat of MDP was the split of the party and internal factionalism. Ibrahim Mohammed Solih had adopted the strategy of 'India First'. But Mohammed Muizzu is considered a pro-China leader and he gave the slogan of 'India Out' in his election campaign. After he came to power, relations between India and Maldives deteriorated considerably. However, now the relations between the two countries have become normal again.