Relationship dossier
India
Maldives
Relationship assessment
A substantial India–Maldives partnership shaped by assistance and security cooperation, with recurring friction over India’s military presence.
India toward Maldives
+45India has provided the Maldives with emergency assistance, development support and security cooperation. India also intervened militarily in 1988 at the Maldivian government’s request to counter a coup attempt. These actions support a cooperative relationship, though Indian military presence has become politically contentious.
Maldives toward India
+20Maldivian governments have sought Indian emergency and development assistance and cooperated with India on security. Under President Mohamed Muizzu, the government requested the withdrawal of Indian military personnel, reflecting significant friction over India’s security role while retaining engagement with India.
Overall relationship
+30The relationship combines a durable pattern of Indian assistance and security cooperation with Maldivian political sensitivity about Indian military involvement. The Maldives’ reliance on cooperation with India has coexisted with periodic efforts to limit or redefine that role, leaving the partnership substantial but subject to political strain.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
India and the Maldives have a substantial partnership involving Indian emergency assistance, development support and security cooperation. The relationship has also faced political friction, especially over the presence and withdrawal of Indian military personnel. Maldives governments have sought Indian support while also asserting greater distance from Indian security involvement, producing a cooperative but not consistently aligned relationship.
Areas of tension
- Maldivian demands for the withdrawal of Indian military personnel and disputes over the scope of India’s security role.
Key developments
India intervened militarily at the Maldivian government’s request to help defeat a coup attempt.
The Muizzu government requested the withdrawal of Indian military personnel from the Maldives.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of bilateral security and development arrangements vary over time.
- The durability of recent changes in military cooperation and the political approach to India is uncertain.