On 23rd January (Tuesday), the Maldivian Foreign Ministry confirmed that they had received a “diplomatic request” from the Chinese government for “rotation of personnel and replenishment”. The confirmation came a day after it was reported that a Chinese “research vessel” was heading towards the Maldives via the Indian Ocean Region.
In an official statement, the Maldivian Foreign Ministry said, “The Maldives has always been a welcoming destination for vessels of friendly countries and continues to host both civilian and military vessels making port calls for peaceful purposes.”
However, it claimed that the vessel would not be conducting any research while in Maldivian waters.
The statement added, “Such port calls not only enhance bilateral ties between the Maldives and its partner countries but also demonstrate the centuries-old tradition of the Maldivian people welcoming vessels from friendly countries.”
It further stated that Maldives continues to uphold international best practices, and relevant international maritime law on all such cases.
As per reports, the Chinese vessel is expected to dock in Male on 8th February. It has been widely reported that China has been notorious for disguising its spy ships as “research vessels”. The so-called research vessel was spotted in the Java Sea off the coast of Jakarta, Indonesia on 22nd January (yesterday).
On Monday (22nd January), an open-source intelligence researcher Damien Symon took to X to point out that the Chinese vessel Xiang Yang Hong 03 was en route to Male. According to the post, the vessel “is entering the Indian Ocean Region, displaying its destination as Male, the vessel is expected to run an ocean survey operation in the Indian Ocean Region raising concern in #India”.
XIANG YANG HONG 03 the Chinese ocean research vessel heading to Male, Maldives is no stranger to the region, having conducted ocean surveys in 2019 & 2020, the vessel has been observed in the IOR, Bay of Bengal & Arabian Sea raising fresh concerns in #India https://t.co/WsiMOzjYkZ pic.twitter.com/8iDzCSuVEg
— Damien Symon (@detresfa_) January 22, 2024
Following his observation, an Indian military official confirmed Symon’s finding and said they are monitoring its movement, Reuters had reported.
Meanwhile, India has so far not issued any statement about the movement of the Chinese “research” or spy vessel.
However, in the past, India has flagged similar movements by other Chinese research vessels with its island neighbour Sri Lanka. Since 2022, Sri Lanka has denied permission for such vessels to dock at its ports.
It is pertinent to note that apart from the latest pro-Chinese remarks by the Maldivian Ministry Maldives’ pro-Chinese government has been taking steps to worsen its diplomatic ties with India and increasing its tilt more towards Beijing.
Pro-Chinese Maldivian President worsening relations with India
Amid diplomatic tension with India, a 14-year-old Maldivian boy died on 20th January after President Mohammed Muizzu reportedly refused to allow a Dornier aircraft provided by India to airlift him.
On 14th January, reiterating his demand that India withdraw its troops from Maldives, the Maldives’ President Mohamed Muizzu asked India to withdraw its military deployment from the archipelago nation by 15th March.
Additionally, Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu on 9th January urged China to send more tourists to the archipelago. His remark came amid reports that a large number of Indians had cancelled their trips to Maldives in the wake of their Ministers’ unwarranted and deplorable comments on India, Indians, and PM Modi.
Notably, it all started on 4th January after PM Narendra Modi shared some pictures of his visit to Lakshadweep. He exhorted people to explore the scenic islands in what could be seen as a push to his ‘vocal for local’ slogan, and an effort to give a boost to tourism on the archipelago.
Following his visit to Lakshadweep, a large demand erupted among Indians to explore the Indian Islands and boost our tourism sector before visiting beaches or tourism sites in other countries. However, jittery Maldivian politicians interjected and reacted by making racial commentary on Indians.
It is important to note that neither the Indian PM mentioned any country nor it was targeted toward any nation, yet some Maldivians feared a potential hit to their tourism economy.
Mariyam Shiuna, Deputy Minister of Youth Empowerment, Information, and Arts, recently made insulting remarks against PM Modi, referring to him as a ‘clown’ and a ‘puppet of Israel’ after he posted pictures from his visit to Lakshadweep Islands. She later deleted the tweet and was among one of the three Ministers who were suspended by the Maldivian government for making disparaging remarks on India.
On Friday (5th January), Zahid Rameez, a Council member of the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) also took to the microblogging site X to mock Indians.
