New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be addressing Parliament of Maldives -- People's Majlis -- during his visit to the country from 7-8 June. This will be his first foreign visit after being re-elected as the Prime Minister.
The Majlis took up the matter on Wednesday and passed a motion with consensus. It is mandated as per their process that if any foreign leader has to address Parliament, the decision has to be approved by the MPs.
In the last six months, there have been a series of high-level visits between India and Maldives. PM Modi had visited the island country during the oath-taking ceremony of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. This visit was followed by visits by Maldivian foreign minister Abdulla Shahid and President Solih.
In March year, Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj visited the country and announced 100 million rufiyaa grant. Under the grant, two new projects, financial support to establish Emergency Medical Services and construction of classrooms were announced.
The Maldives is a key country in the Indian Ocean region and lies in the heart of busy shipping lanes connecting Africa with Asia. The previous administration under President Yameen had junked the "India first" policy for a pro-china policy.
After taking over as the PM in 2014, Modi had visited Bhutan as his first foreign visit. During the visit, he had addressed the joint session of Parliament in Bhutan.
