India says discussed continued aircraft use in Maldives

Maldives and India have discussed ways to continue the use of Indian helicopters and the Dornier aircraft used by the last five governments to transport patients, the Indian External Affairs Ministry said.

Official talks on the withdrawal of Indian troops from Maldives began on Sunday. Sunday's meeting, it is learnt, is the first meeting of the 'core group' announced by President Mohammed Muizzu and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the COP28 Summit in Dubai.

The meeting requested the Indian government to withdraw its troops from Maldives before March 15.

The meeting was followed by a statement from the Maldivian Foreign Ministry and the Indian External Affairs Ministry. However, some of the details contained in the two statements differ.

The two countries discussed ways to continue operations using the Indian aircrafts in Maldives to carry patients and in disasters, the Indian External Affairs Ministry said in a statement. However, there is no such mention in the statement issued by the Maldivian Foreign Ministry.

While ways to sustain the use of Indian aircraft was seemingly discussed on Sunday, from next March, patients will not be flown by Indian helicopters and Dornier plane, but by the national airline, President Mohamed Muizzu said on Saturday.

The Cabinet meeting held on 25th last month decided to introduce the air ambulance service from March next year. In his speech on Saturday, the President gave some additional details about the service.

The President said the service would bring many benefits to the people of Maldives. The service is being expanded to be able to take patients to other countries as well, he said.

In a statement issued on Sunday's meeting: