Maldives and China sign 20 agreements, vow greater cooperation on Belt and Road Initiative

Maldives and China on Wednesday signed 20 agreements, including one on accelerating cooperation on the Belt and Road Initiative, according to a statement issued by Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu’s office.

The agreements mark a “significant step in bilateral relations” between the two countries, read the statement.

The Belt and Road Initiative is a multitrillion-dollar infrastructure scheme launched in 2013 by Chinese President Xi Jinping that envisions rebuilding the old Silk Road to mainly connect China with Asia and Europe.

India has been critical of the Belt and Road Initiative as one of its components, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. New Delhi has maintained that the corridor violates India’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

The agreement comes amid a diplomatic row between the Maldives and India, pertaining to remarks by three deputy ministers of the island nation about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s social media posts.

The social media posts showed the prime minister snorkelling during his recent visit to Lakshadweep. Maldivian minister Maryam Shiuna had reacted to the picture calling Modi a “clown”. “The puppet of Israel Mr Narendra diver with life jacket,” she had said in a social media post, which has now been deleted.

Following an uproar on social media by some Indians, Shiuna and two other ministers – Malsha Shareef and Mahzoom Majid – were...

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