India will help the Maldives, who are short of money, to fill their budget deficit | India News

NEW DELHI: India will help the Maldives to catch up with their budget deficit by providing immediate help to the cash – strapped government. This was announced by Maldives Foreign Minister Abdullah Shahid after talks with Indian leaders.

Announcing that Maldives '"India's" policy was once again on the right track, Shahid told reporters that the Ibrahim Solih government would undertake a review of the Maldives' obligations vis-à-vis the country. debt of different countries, but mainly from China. "President Yameen tried to be a puppeteer, to play against India and China. He failed. We have a strong policy first in India, but we will engage with all other countries, "said Shahid.

Describing India as a trusted and proven partner, he said the government would decide the free trade agreement with China after a thorough review. "The FTA was rushed by the parliament. The parliamentary committee reviewed a 1,000-page document in 10 minutes and pbaded it. We were in opposition so we did not have the opportunity to examine it, "Shahid said.

However, it was clear that the Maldives considered China as a friend, one of the largest economies in the world whose badistance had benefited the Maldives.

Maldives Finance Minister Ibrahim Ameer said he believed some Chinese projects had been done at "inflated" prices, but could not renegotiate them.

He added that the government had not yet fully badessed the amount of the debt owed to China, since most of the transactions had been concluded in secrecy and that there was no public accounts.

Shahid announced that he would travel to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Japan, China and the European Union to rekindle his commitment and seek help.

He confirmed that there was no question of sending back advanced light helicopters to India, threatened by Yameen.

Economic Development Minister Fayyaz Ismail said that the Maldives had asked India to extend the existing currency conversion agreements to six months, and to increase this amount by 200. millions of dollars. "We are counting on India to lead the IHavan project". IHavan is a special economic zone and a transhipment port located in a strategically located north atoll on the busiest road in the Indian Ocean. This is significant since Yameen had blocked all Indian attempts to participate in IHavan, instead turning to China.

Ismail told another group of journalists: "We are trying to put the last five years of instability in the Maldives and we will try to resolve all disputes between Maldivian and Indian investors. In this regard, we hope to strengthen our bilateral trade. We hope to conclude a bilateral agreement with India on the increase of investments. "