Concerns over government's silence on 'India-related' issues
China and Pakistan do not have very good foreign relations with India. This government has had a lot of engagement with India.
By
Shahudha Mohamed
Opposition figures and some members of the public have begun expressing concern over the fact that President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and the government do not openly speak about the major world events that may have Indian interests.
Some of the major events that have taken place in recent times on which the government had stayed silent include:
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Chinese President Xi Jinping securing a historic third term in office
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The assassination attempt on Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan
Although President Solih and senior government officials have always openly congratulated political victories for world leaders, they have not congratulated Xi after he was appointed for a third term on 23 October. On the other hand, not long after Rishi Sunak was elected as UK prime minister the very next day, the president tweeted congratulating him.
So far, the government has not commented on the assassination attempt of the former Pakistani Prime Minister. Among those Maldivian officials who raised concerns over the matter was former Islamic minister and a senior leader of the opposition coalition Dr Mohammad Shaheem Ali Saeed.
When asked about these incidents, presidential spokesperson Miuvan Mohamed said:
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President Solih congratulated Xi and his party on the conclusion of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China; the President made the remarks at a ceremony held to mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Maldives and China
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The ceremony took place on October 22, a day before Xi officially announced his third term in office
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When repeated the question, Miuvan said Xi's election for a third term was the result of the congress and that President Solih had since sent a congratulatory letter to Xi
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While leaders of other countries are openly congratulated on such big victories, the president does so either through the president's office website or Twitter
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Despite repeated prods for comments about the government's silence on Imran Khan’s attempted assassination, Miuvan remained tight-lipped on the subject
The government has maintained a very close relationship with India, which sees China and Pakistan as regional foes.
Responding to a question from Atoll Times whether this was due to external influence, Miuvan said, "President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has no influence from any third party or country in the implementation of our foreign policy."
Meanwhile, Maldives had recently entered the heated debate between the United States and Saudi Arabia after OPEC+ decided to curb oil supply to the global market. OPEC+ is an intergovernmental alliance of 23 oil-exporting countries which meets regularly to decide how much crude oil to sell on the world market.
Supporting the statement issued by the Saudi ministry of foreign affairs, the Maldives foreign ministry said that the government of Maldives believes that the OPEC+ decision is strictly an economic one. According to Maldives, this is a positive step towards stabilising the global oil market.
In response to a reporter's question on whether it was a statement made under the influence of any country, expressing concern that the reduction in oil volumes would hurt an oil import-dependent country like the Maldives, Miuvan had earlier said that "the state, the government, has no influence in taking any decision".
Several lawmakers, including MP Ibrahim Rasheed from Maafannu Central constituency, had expressed concern on the matter in the parliament last week.
Both the opposition and some members of the public have alleged that India's influence affects the country's foreign policy and major decisions of the government. The opposition also alleged that the two countries entered into secret agreements to allow Indian soldiers to stay in the country. They claim that's why the opposition has launched their campaign called 'India Out'.
However, President Solih declared the campaign a threat to national security and ordered it to be stopped by decree.
