Maldives cosying up to China a warning for India
New Delhi: Is India losing out to Chinese interests in it's neighbourhood? After Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh, where the governments share better relations with Beijing than New Delhi, next in line could be strategically located Maldives. Maldives is the world's most popular honeymoon destination and a picture-perfect archipelago on the Indian Ocean, where the rich and famous from all corners of the world come on holiday.
And at the same time Maldives is home to Asia's longest running dictator. For the past 30 years President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom has ruled the tiny nation with an iron-hand. Widespread allegations of human rights violations forced people like Maldivian Democratic Party's presidential candidate Mohammed Nasheed on the streets three years back. Now, with ever increasing public support, Nasheed is on his first visit to India to garner support from the Indian government to help ensure a free and fair election in his country three months later.
And there is a grave warning too. President Gayoom is actively courting China for the past one year, creating a security for threat for India in the Indian Ocean. "Gayoom is trying to shift his friendship ties from India towards China with the belief that it would be difficult for him to maintain a strong friendly relationship, personal relationship with India while there is call for democracy at home," Nasheed says. There is now talk about the Chinese setting up a military bases in one of the Maldivian islands.
Nasheed insists that his party would not let that happen if they come to power. Last week, Nasheed along with a five-member delegation of his Maldivian Democratic Party met Indian Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon and briefed him about the situation. "It's a country of immense strategic importance to us. I hope not (that we are losing the strategic importance to China)," Kuldeep Sahdev, former Indian diplomat, says. It's this new equation that President Gayoom fears the most. He has always counted on Indian backing to rule for all these years.
India even sent commandos to fight back a coup against him in 1988 but now China is not only giving aid but also helping President Gayoom build his government offices.
http://www.ibnlive.com/news/maldives-cosying-up-to-china-a-warning-for-india/68915-2.html |
__._,_.___
[Disclaimer: ALOCHONA Management is not liable for information contained in this message. The author takes full responsibility.]
To unsubscribe/subscribe, send request to alochona-owner@egroups.com
Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required)
Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch to Fully Featured
Visit Your Group | Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use | Unsubscribe
__,_._,___