India completely withdraws soldiers from Maldives: Official

NEW DELHI: India has withdrawn all its soldiers from Maldives ahead of the May 10 deadline set by President Mohamed Muizzu for the withdrawal of the Indian military personnel, official said.
The President's office chief spokesperson, Heena Waleed told Sun.mv news portal that the last batch of Indian soldiers has been repatriated, without disclosing the exact number.She added that details about the number of soldiers stationed would be disclosed later.
The Indian military personnel were stationed in the Maldives to operate and maintain two helicopters and Dornier aircraft that India had gifted earlier. The Maldives government had previously announced that 51 of these soldiers were repatriated to India on Monday, and the presence of 89 Indian soldiers in the country was cited based on official documents, while the countries agreed to withdraw the remaining Indian troops before May 10.
Addressing a media briefing in New Delhi, External affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the first and second batches of the soldiers had returned to India, and "now deputation of competent Indian technical personnel has taken place" to operate the three Indian aviation platforms.
The development coincided with Maldivian Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer's visit to India, where he met with External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Thursday. They had "extensive discussions" on bilateral ties and regional security issues.
The relations between the two countries had come under severe strain after Muizzu, widely seen as a pro-China leader, insisted on the withdrawal of Indian military personnel operating three military platforms in the island nation.
The Maldives is a key maritime neighbour for India in the Indian Ocean Region and holds a special place in its initiatives like 'SAGAR' (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and the 'Neighbourhood First Policy' of the Modi government.
Repatriation of some 90 Indian military personnel stationed in the Maldives was a key pledge of Muizzu during his presidential campaign last year.
(With inputs from agencies)