Beijing: China has warned against any military intervention in the Maldives, saying that it would complicate the situation, amid repeated calls for India’s military intervention by exiled former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed to resolve the political crisis.
Maldives plunged into chaos last week when the country’s Supreme Court ordered the release of nine top political prisoners, including Nasheed, maintaining that their trials were “politically motivated “.
Nasheed, who is in exile in Sri Lanka, had Tuesday tweeted that India should send an envoy, backed by the military, to release judges and leaders of political parties detained by President Abdulla Yameen.
When asked to comment on Nasheed’s call to India, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said Wednesday the
international community should “play a constructive role respecting Maldives sovereignty instead of
taking measures that could complicate the situation.”
Asked how the situation could be resolved internally when Yameen has arrested Supreme Court judges as well as former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Geng said China’s stand is that the parties should find a solution on their own.
Geng skirted a question on whether China is asking Yameen to hold talks with political parties to resolve the crisis. He also sought to refute allegations by Maldives opposition parties that China is backing Yameen because he has approved several Chinese projects and signed the controversial Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China during his visit to Beijing in December.
“China maintains friendly ties with the Maldives including the FTA which serves the interests of the two countries. The facts have proven that after the FTA has benefited the two nations,” Geng said.
“The problems in Maldives are its internal affairs. China follows the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of others,” he said.
Opposition leaders in the Maldives allege that China is tacitly backing Yameen, which emboldened him to resort to unconstitutional actions like arresting top judges.
China, which has huge investments in the Maldives, has asked thousands of its nationals to cancel their holiday plans for this month’s week-long Chinese New Year Holiday which begins February 15.
China views the Maldives as key to its Maritime Silk Road project in the Indian Ocean as it has already acquired Hambantota port in Sri Lanka and Djibouti in the Horn of Africa.
The Chinese official media which was silent since the crisis broke out in Maldives last week Wednesday came out supporting Yameen’s regime.
The Global Times, a part of the ruling Communist Party of China’s publications, came out with an editorial saying ‘India must stop intervening in Male’.
“Political struggles are internal affairs, and New Delhi has no justification to intervene in Male’s affairs. The Maldives must be under huge pressure from India,” it said.
“The sovereignty of Maldives’ should be respected. The political unrest should be left to the Maldivian people. We urge all sides in the country to exercise restraint and end the crisis,” it said.
Meanwhile, exiled former president Mohamed Nasheed Wedneday asked India to turn “liberators” and intervene militarily to end the turmoil in Maldives, in a rebuke to China which has opposed military intervention and called for dialogue to resolve the crisis. “Saying ‘resolve things internally’ is akin to asking us to escalate the revolt. Maldivians see India’s role positively: in 1988 they came, solved the crisis, and left. They were not occupiers but liberators. That is why Maldivians look to India now,” Nasheed tweeted.
In 1988, then Maldivian president Abdul Gayoom had sought India’s help to defeat a coup by mercenaries.
PTI