US to give Maldives patrol boats, aircraft
News Desk :
Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs of the US Department of State Donald Lu has stated that the United States of America is holding deliberations to gift Maldives patrol boats and an aircraft to aid in patrolling the ocean territory and borders.
Speaking at the Indo-Pacific Relations panel discussion held at United States Institute for Peace (USIP) last Friday, Lu said that Maldives, with about 1200 isles, has to monitor an ocean territory of approximately 53,000 kilometers, reports The Edition.
“That’s about the area of France. Even though we see Maldives as a small country, they have to maintain the security of an area that large,” Lu said.
Lu maintained that security of such a large area in the Indian Ocean can only be maintained through having the necessary technology, training, and resources. He declared that it is a responsibility of larger nations to ensure that the Maldives is provided with these.
“Very recently, we [America] have committed to give four patrol boats to the Maldivian navy. We are also discussing giving them an aircraft. All these vessels, and other resources, are necessary [for the Maldives] to maintain the security of that area,” he said.
Currently, Maldives has a number of aircraft gifted to them by the Indian government. The matter has become contentious as Indian military personnel were stationed in the country to operate said aircraft.
The current administration has now reached an agreement with India to replace Indian military personnel with qualified civilians from the country.
The Maldives’ administration maintains that it will not allow any foreign military personnel to be stationed in the country for any purposes.
“If the Maldives’ debt is not restructured in 2026, more than USD 1.3 billion dollars will need to be issued as repayment. This is an amount higher than the annual budget,” Lu said.
According to Lu, the solution to such challenges faced by small countries like the Maldives is private sector investments that are beneficial to both sides.
He noted the vast opportunities for investments in the Maldives that he observed during his visit to Maldives in January.
“We are in deliberations with Maldives to come to an investment agreement. Under this agreement, we will provide such funding to the Maldives through the US Development Finance Corporation,” Lu said.
“But my belief is that, China can only be a good partner if there is genuine competition. However, I am not seeing that competition,” he said, noting that what he observed instead is large loans being taken from China to undertake major projects which would not prove economically beneficial in the long term.