Chinese spy ship goes to Maldives twice, still Muizu govt says – we didn’t give permission for research

New Delhi: The attitude of Maldives which was bitter towards China is now beginning to change. Mohammed Muizu’s government is now urging Indians to be ‘part’ of its cruises, but has now also said it has not allowed a Chinese ‘spy’ ship to explore its waters. Underscoring that the peace and security of the Indian Ocean is important to neighboring countries including India, Maldives Foreign Minister Musa Jamir said on Thursday that his government has not allowed a Chinese vessel for exploration purposes in Maldivian waters. This statement by the Maldivian foreign minister comes at a time when China’s marine research vessel (which is being seen as a spy ship) Jiang Yang Hong 3 has reached the Maldives again. This is the second time in the past two months that a Chinese spy ship has reached the Maldives.

Maldives Foreign Minister Musa Zamir, who visited India, said, ‘Peace and security of the Indian Ocean is important for India, Maldives, Sri Lanka and other countries in our neighbourhood. So, as I said earlier, we will continue to work together. Elaborating on the Chinese ship’s visit to Maldives, he said that our government issued personal circulation and friendly portable permits and obtained diplomatic clearance from the Chinese, which is very common in Maldives.

‘Research not permitted on ships’
He continued, ‘It has happened that we as a peaceful country welcome ships coming for peaceful purposes. But they did not come for research in Maldivian waters, we did not allow the Chinese ship to research in Maldivian waters. Maldivian Foreign Minister Musa Zamir said research vessels are not welcome in Maldivian waters.

The Chinese ship left for the second time on April 27
In fact, amid the standoff with India, on April 27, the Chinese research vessel Jiang Yang Hong 3 returned to Maldivian waters. This is the second time that a Chinese spy ship has arrived in the Maldives since Muizhu’s government came to power. This is the second visit by a Chinese spy ship in two months after Maldivian President Mohamed Muizu is pro-China and the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC) won parliamentary elections. It is to be noted that Defense Minister Ghassan Maumoun had told the Maldives Parliament last month that the Chinese ship would not conduct any research despite going within and close to Maldivian waters. Relations between India and the Maldives have been strained since President Muizu took office in November.

Tags: China news, Maldives