Free Trade Agreement, investment treaty on radar as PM Modi visits Maldives this week

New Delhi, July 22 Prime Minister Narendra Modi's two-day State visit to Maldives this week will not only contribute further to consolidating strong ties between the two nations but also enhance peace, prosperity and security in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said on Tuesday. Both countries, he revealed, are also in discussions to negotiate a Free Trade Agreement and an investment treaty.

Prime Minister Modi will undertake a State Visit to Maldives from July 25–26, on the invitation of the Maldives President, Mohamed Muizzu. This will be Prime Minister Modi's third visit to Maldives - he had visited the Indian Ocean archipelago in 2018 and 2019, earlier - and the first by a Head of State or Government to Maldives during the Presidency of Muizzu which began in November 2023.

PM Modi will arrive in Maldives on July 25 which would be the second and final leg of his two-nation visit, following the visit to the United Kingdom, starting Wednesday.

Besides holding discussions on issues of mutual interest with Muizzu, Prime Minister Modi will also be the 'Guest of Honour' at the celebrations of the 60th anniversary of the Independence of Maldives on July 26. 2025 also marks 60 years of the establishment of diplomatic relations between both countries.

President Muizzu was on a State Visit to India in October 2024. He also visited New Delhi to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the new government that had been elected earlier in the year. Both leaders had also met on the sidelines of the COP meeting in Dubai.

"The relationship with the Maldives is comprehensive and multifaceted. It's been paid attention to by leadership at the highest levels and we believe that this visit by the Prime Minister will contribute further to consolidating these strong ties and contribute to peace, prosperity and security in the Indian Ocean Region that both of us inhabit," Foreign Secretary Misri stated during a special media briefing held in New Delhi on Tuesday ahead of PM Modi's two-nation visit.

The two leaders will also take stock of the progress in the implementation of the India-Maldives Joint Vision for a 'Comprehensive Economic and Maritime Security Partnership', adopted during the State Visit of the President of Maldives to India in October 2024.

With PM Modi slated to inaugurate some infrastructure projects and also announce new initiatives, the visit reflects the importance India attaches to its maritime neighbour, Maldives, which continues to hold a special place in India's 'Neighbourhood First' policy and Vision MAHASAGAR.

"We have always been the first on hand to respond to the needs of Maldives in times whenever it has faced crisis, natural or man-made. There has been a robust, political relationship which has been bolstered by regular visits at high-levels," said Misri.

"This joint vision, in a sense, has become the guiding framework for our ties. This year already, in the first six months, we have seen nearly half a dozen ministerial level visits from the Maldives. The speaker of the Maldives Parliament visited India. In fact, the very first engagement this year that the External Affairs Minister held was with the Foreign Minister of Maldives," he added.

A High-Level Core Group (HLCG) has been constituted to oversee the progress towards implementation of the joint vision between both countries. The HLCG has met twice, at Male and Delhi in January and May 2025, respectively. Since then, there has been regular political visits from Maldives to India, especially, in 2025, covering Ministers of Finance, Foreign, Defence, Environment, Information and Arts, Health etc as well as that of a delegation led by the Speaker of the Maldivian Majlis.

Misri stated that India is one of the largest trading partners of the Maldives and the bilateral trade currently stands at nearly 500 million dollars.

"On the economic front, one recent development which I would like to share with you is that both countries are in discussions to negotiate a Free Trade Agreement and an investment treaty as well and new areas of cooperation including renewable energy, fisheries etc are also being worked on. One of the largest areas of bilateral cooperation is the development partnership between the two countries. India has been a traditional development partner of the Maldives, executing various initiatives through a mix of Lines of Credit at concessional rates, grants, buyers credit facilities, as also conducting capacity building programmes in a number of areas.

"The flagship project that is underway currently is the Greater Male connectivity project which has the potential to be an infrastructure gamechanger in the Greater Male region, connecting four islands of the Maldives. There are also projects underway in the area of roads, airports, fisheries, processing units and others. We are also alleviating the pressure by helping with social housing as per the needs and priorities of Maldives."

He also mentioned India's financial assistance to Maldives government through instruments like twin currency swap arrangements. The Foreign Secretary stated that Maldives is one of largest beneficiaries of India's capacity building programmes.

"We also have between the two countries a robust defence and security cooperation. India continues to assist Maldives in building its capacity, training Maldives defence personnel and a lot of this is done through regular training programmes, naval exercises between the two countries. We've been helping Maldives enhance its capacity for EZ surveillance and maritime domain awareness through the provision of ships and assets and the two countries are also cooperating under the ambit of the Colombo Security Conclave," the Foreign Secretary said.

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