Maldives FM on SAARC Charter Day calls for deeper regional collaboration

The challenges of our time require deepened engagement among the countries in South Asia, Maldivian foreign minister Moosa Zameer said Friday.

In a message of felicitations on the occasion of the 39th SAARC Charter Day, Zameer said the SAARC Charter was designed to encourage members to collaborate to tackle shared challenges for the benefit of people of this region.

"The Maldives is dedicated to this regional goal and will continue to work together to overcome shared concerns. There is no doubt that the challenges of our time require deepened engagement between our countries," the message read.

"On this momentous day, let us revive the spirit of collaboration and renew our commitment to building a more interconnected and resilient South Asia.”

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is the regional intergovernmental organisation and geopolitical union of states in South Asia. Its member states are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.

SAARC was founded in Dhaka on 8 December 1985.

SAARC has remained virtually non-functional at the top level since the last SAARC summit was held in Kathmandu in 2014, mainly due to the long-standing tensions between India and Pakistan.