India Hands Over Defence Equipment to Maldives

• India has provided defence equipment and stores to the Maldives on request from the Maldivian government.

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reaffirmed India’s readiness to support Maldives in capability enhancement for defence preparedness.

• The talks were fruitful, with discussions on deepening defence cooperation and enhancing the Maldives National Defence Forces’ capability.

• The two Ministers reviewed bilateral defence and security cooperation and reaffirmed the commitment to work closely towards a comprehensive economic and maritime security partnership.

• The visit marks the first by the Maldivian Defence Minister to India since the new government came to power.

• The visit also discussed the Ekatha Harbour project for the MNDF Coast Guard, one of India’s biggest grant-in-aid projects.