Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu claims India agreed to remove its troops from islands

Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu has claimed that the Indian government agreed to withdraw its armed forces from the Indian Ocean territory, as he asserted to have kept its poll promise of reducing the Indian military’s presence in the region.

"In the discussions we had, the Indian government has agreed to remove Indian soldiers," Muizzu told reporters.

"We also agreed to set up a high-level committee to solve issues related to development projects."

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Muizzu’s remarks came days after his engagements with the Indian officials on the sidelines of the COP28 climate summit in Dubai.

However, the Indian government has yet to confirm the development.

Muizzu's bid to change Maldives’ 'India first'policy

Muizzu’s election campaign had primarily focussed on changing Maldives’ “India first” policy and removing the presence of a small contingent of 75 Indian military.

The British-educated civil engineer, who is known for his pro-China leanings, had accused the previous Solih’s administration of kowtowing to India.

Muizzu had earlier argued that the presence of Indian troops could put the Maldives at risk in the event of any tensions between India and China along their Himalayan border.

"Maldives is too small to get entangled with this global power struggle. We will not get entangled into this," he said.

After winning the election, he also told BBC in October that he would review every agreement the Maldives signed with India.

India, China tussle for influence over Maldives

"We don't know what's in there. Even in Parliament, some of the MPs during the debates said that they didn't know what was in there. I am sure we will find it out," he was quoted as saying.

India had always considered Maldives, with its population of about 380,000 Sunni Muslims, to be within its sphere of influence. However, it has grown wary of China’s expanding footprint in the region.

New Delhi has a history of entanglements with Male, including the deployment of soldiers to thwart a 1988 coup attempt.

Muizzu, a former housing minister, is credited with implementing Chinese-funded infrastructure projects, including the construction of 7,000 apartments and a landmark bridge linking the capital island Male with the nearby airport island of Hulhule.