Defence Minister Maria Ahmed Didi says the government believes that India understands the unique challenges the Maldives faces and the country's needs.

She made the comments in her video address to the India Defence Conclave 2022.

Minister Maria said that India and the Maldives share a unique relationship and that bilateral relations will remain the strongest bond between the two countries.

She said that leaders of both countries had reitriated during President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's recent visit to India, the Maldives-India defence and security partnership is time tested and is the leading example of regional cooperation.

She further said that this partnership is a force for stability in the Indian Ocean region and that the relationship between the two neighbors is based on mutual trust.

The Minister noted that the relationship between the two countries is evolving and that defense cooperation is central to that. She said that she was confident that the defense and security partnership between the two countries will only grow stronger in the future.

In any collaborative effort, trust and information are key. We must be willing to share pertinent information, information that is substantive, and information that the other finds useful.
Defence Minister Maria

The Minister further said that particpative, inclusive, and open forums to discuss our shared challenges and prospective shared solutions contribute to colloboration and understanding the unique requirements for continued cooperation between the two nations.