Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a visit to Maldives from 25 to 26 July, which is considered a major attempt to restore and strengthen relations with India’s maritime neighbor. This will be his third visit to Maldives, and more importantly, this will be the first official visit of any head of state or head of the government since Dr. Mohammad Muizzu took over as President. Prime Minister Modi will visit the United Kingdom from 23 to 24 July at the invitation of Britain Prime Minister Sir Kir Starmer. During his fourth visit to Britain, Prime Minister Modi will hold wide discussion on all aspects of India-Britain relations with Starmer, such as trade, technology, education, defense and climate change. Modi will also meet King Charles III.
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First high level visit after one year tension
Modi’s Maldives visit will be symbolic and strategic. He has been invited as the ‘chief guest’ at the 60th Independence Day celebrations of Maldives on 26 July 2025. This is not just an official journey; There is a deep diplomatic message hidden in it. India-Maldives relations have been going through a tense phase since taking over as President Mohammad Muizzu in November 2023. Muizzu supported the “India Out” movement during his campaign for the presidency, a political movement that demanded the evacuation of Indian soldiers from the island Republic. This movement gained momentum and created tension between India and Maldives. The situation worsened in early 2024 when two ministers of Muizzu’s cabinet made derogatory comments about Prime Minister Modi on social media. These posts were in response to the campaign of tourism by Modi in Lakshadweep. Many people saw it as an attempt to present Indian islands as an alternative to Maldives. In response, many Indian social media users started the “boycott of Maldives” campaign. A major source of Maldives’s revenue, the arrival of Indian tourists suddenly decreased. But both sides also tried to reduce stress. India offered to deploy civil engineers instead of its military personnel posted for managing aircraft operations. New Delhi also provided the currency exchange facility and increased the financial assistance given to Maldives by ₹ 600 crore in the budget of 2025, which is much more than ₹ 470 crore provided in 2024-25.
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Attempt to re -establish relationships by Muizzu
Maldives President Muizzu, who launched an anti -India campaign before his election, has now come forward to re -establish relations with India. The two ministers, who had earlier made anti -India comments, resigned in September 2024, when Muizzu was going to go to India’s official visit. Although it was officially described due to “personal reasons”, their resignations have come at a time that has shocked people and indicated a change in diplomatic strategy. On June 9, 2024, Muizzu came to India to attend the swearing -in ceremony of Prime Minister Modi, which also attended the neighboring and other leaders of the Indian Ocean countries. On returning, Muizzu described the journey as successful and said that he is “happy” with this invitation. He has since indicated his desire to increase relations with India, even announced that he will come to India very soon for bilateral talks.