India eases Maldives' debt, pledges approximately Rs 4,850 crore credit line
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India on Friday announced a Line of Credit (LoC) of $565 million (approximately ₹4,850 crore) to the Maldives, along with a reduction in the country's annual debt repayment obligations on existing Government of India-funded LoCs. The move provides further financial relief to the island nation during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's two-day visit to Male.The announcement came after wide-ranging talks between PM Modi and Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu.Addressing a joint press conference, Modi said, "India is the closest neighbour to Maldives. Maldives holds a unique place in India's Neighbourhood First policy and Vision MAHASAGAR. India is proud to be Maldives' most trusted friend. Be it disaster or pandemic, India always stands as a first responder.""We have decided to provide a Line of Credit of $565 million to Maldives," he said, adding, "Talks on a Free Trade Agreement between India and Maldives have started." "India will always support Maldives to strengthen its defence capabilities," Modi further stated, as the Muizzu government appeared to have moved past earlier concerns regarding India's defence support to Male. The two leaders also jointly inaugurated the new building of the Maldives Ministry of Defence.President Muizzu said the LoC would be used for priority infrastructure and social sector projects of his government."This visit coincides with two cherished occasions," Muizzu said, referring to the dual celebration of Maldivian independence and 60 years of diplomatic ties with India. The visit marks a turnaround in bilateral relations since early 2024.Several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were signed to expand cooperation across various sectors. These included agreements on fisheries and aquaculture, meteorological collaboration between India's Institute of Tropical Meteorology and the Maldives Meteorological Services, and sharing scalable digital governance solutions to promote digital transformation.In a key financial connectivity step, a network-level agreement was also concluded between NPCI International Payments Limited and the Maldives Monetary Authority to bring India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) to the Maldives.
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