Maldives reopens embassy in Washington

The Maldives has reopened its embassy in Washington DC.

The reopening of the embassy was held on Friday, in a ceremony attended by the Maldivian Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid.

The ceremony was also attended by the US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, Donald Lu.

In his speech, Lu described Maldives as an important Indo-Pacific partner, and spoke about deepening the times between the Maldives and the US.

Prior to the reopening of the embassy, communications between Maldives and the US were held through the US embassy in Sri Lanka, or the Maldives Mission to the UN in New York.

Maldives had originally opened an embassy in Washington in 2007, but shut it down the next year.

In a meeting with the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday, Maldivian Foreign Minister Shahid discussed inking a visa waiver agreement between the two countries.

The two also discussed greater opportunities for Maldivian students for scholarships, and student exchange programs.