Maldives President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has expressed hope to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with India, according to Male-based Adhadhu. Male has signed a trade deal with Beijing, which will begin in September. The Maldivian President has expressed hope of signing such an agreement with India as well, the report said.
Speaking at the official function held to mark the 59th anniversary of independence, President Muizzu said that in addition to China, efforts were underway to enter into FTAs with India, Turkiye, and Britain.
Muizzu said the result of implementing the FTA with China would be the elimination of tariffs for a total of 7,897 items in nine sectors, including 298 fisheries products. He said when the FTA comes into force, an import duty will not be charged for exporting these products from the Maldives to China.
When an FTA is signed with Turkiye, duty concessions will be granted for 53 exports from the Maldives with zero tariffs for some items, the President said.
"The government is also working on currency swap agreements with China and India to help local businesses," Muizzu said as per Adhadhu. This would pave the way for alleviating the dollar shortage and assuring economic sovereignty, he said.
Muizzu also spoke of 'Loan Restructuring and Debt Management', especially because of its financial bilateral relations with India and China. He acknowledged the "significant contributions of China and India in assisting with the Maldives’ debt repayment efforts".
India has deferred a $50 million loan and provided food quotas for two more years. China has given the green light to defer loans from the Exim Bank for various development projects for the next five years, with no interest payments during this period.
Under President Muizzu, who came to power last November, India's relationship with Maldives nosedived. Muizzu rode to power banking on the 'India Out' campaign and soon after taking over, he pushed for the repatriation of Indian military personnel from his country making a demand to this effect.
Muizzu Thanked India For...
In a separate development, the Maldives resumed using a Dornier aircraft and two helicopters gifted by India for medical evacuations after the two countries reached an understanding over the repatriation of Indian military personnel operating the three aviation platforms in the archipelagic nation.
President Muizzu, known for his pro-China stance, thanked India for enabling the resumption of medical evacuation services with civilian aviation personnel from India. The Dornier aircraft and the helicopters were earlier operated by Indian military personnel and were stopped soon after President Muizzu took oath last November.
New Delhi vs Male Over Trade Deal
Earlier this year, Maldivian Minister for Economic Development and Trade Mohamed Saeed indicated that India had initiated efforts to have an FTA between the two countries. However, New Delhi rejected the claim, saying it had not made any proposal to the Maldives for FTA and that it was ready to consider if the island nation expressed interest in such a pact.
"No specific proposal for a bilateral FTA with the Maldives has been made by the Government of India," Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. "If the Government of Maldives expresses interest in having an FTA with India, we will give it due consideration," he said.
The Maldivian Minister had said India wanted a free trade agreement with Maldives, in addition to SAFTA (South Asian Free Trade Agreement). The Maldives President had offered this opportunity to all countries, Saeed said, adding that the government aimed to enter into such agreements with as many countries as possible to offer ease in trade activities.
(With inputs from agencies)