President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on Tuesday met with the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
Speaking at the meeting, President Solih said that enhancing ties with India and other countries of the Indian Ocean Region is one of the main priorities of Maldivian foreign policy, the President's Office revealed.
The President further expressed his delight with the opportunity to showcase the strength of the relationship between the Maldives and other Indian Ocean countries while hosting the 4th Indian Ocean Conference (IOC) earlier this month.
He also highlighted the many areas in which the two governments agreed to cooperate, including key development and infrastructural projects, as well as economic cooperation, stating that some of these projects have progressed to the implementation stage and that the Maldivian people are already beginning to benefit from this cooperation.
The President also congratulated PM Modi for India’s work as a leader of pragmatic climate action, particularly at the UN Climate Action Summit.
PM Modi noted that the Indian delegation returned immensely happy from the IOC held in the Maldives, and congratulated the President for successfully hosting a conference of such magnitude.
He highlighted the increased bilateral cooperation between the two countries since President Solih’s administration took office. Conversing on ways of progressing Maldives’ and India’s mutual interests in the international arena, the two leaders noted that the ongoing UN General Assembly provided an opportunity to accomplish this.
Concluding the meeting, both leaders expressed their resolve to continue to work together towards mutual benefits and to preserve the historic relations between the two countries, said the President's Office.
