International Desk: President of Maldives Mohammad Muijju is going to visit India today on Sunday. During the five-day (October 6 to 10) state visit, Muijju is expected to seek India's 'bailout' for his country. Because the island is in economic crisis. The country is afraid of going into debt. News from BBC Bengal
'Bail out' is the financial assistance of a state or international organization to a country or commercial enterprise on the verge of bankruptcy due to debt or capital crisis.
Muizju took over as president late last year. He is making his first official bilateral visit to India after assuming office as President.
During the election campaign, Muijju had pledged to reduce New Delhi's influence over his country. At the center of his election campaign was the 'India Out' or 'Bharat Hatao' policy.
Relations between the two countries have been strained ever since Muijzu became president. However, experts say, Muizzur's visit is an indication that Maldives cannot ignore its big neighbor (India).
Last month (September) the foreign exchange reserves of Maldives were about 440 million US dollars. With this money, it is possible to cover one and a half month's import expenses.
Last month, the international credit rating agency Moody's downgraded the Maldives' credit rating. The agency says the Maldives' risk of default has increased in real terms. Now if India 'bails out' it will strengthen Maldives' foreign exchange reserves.
Muijju has already visited Türkiye and China. His visit to China last January in particular was seen as a major diplomatic snub by the Maldives towards New Delhi.
Because, the previous leaders of Maldives chose New Delhi for their first foreign visit after being elected.
Three Maldivian officials made disparaging remarks about Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Muijju was elected. This started a debate in India.
Azim Zaheer, a Maldives analyst and lecturer at the University of Western Australia, said President Muijzu's visit to India is a sign of change in many ways. Most notably, Muijju's visit reflects how dependent Maldives is on its neighbor India. No other country can easily fulfill the dependence of Maldives on India.
Maldives consists of about 1,200 coral islands located in the Indian Ocean. The population of the country is about 520 thousand.
The small island nation of Maldives depends on its huge neighbor India for much of its food, infrastructure and healthcare.
New Delhi and Male are yet to officially confirm that a financial package from India for the Maldives is on the agenda during Muizzur's visit. But according to experts, it will remain in discussion.
