Yameen: Became unhopeful when govt. said Indian troops' removal will not be easy

Former president Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayyom who recently resigned from ruling PPM-PNC coalition, on Saturday night, said he became unhopeful when the current administration claimed the removal of Indian troops in the Maldives would not be easy.

Yameen, who served as Maldivian leader from 2013-2018, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for money laundering and bribery charges in connection to the sale of V. Aarah on December 26, 2022.

He was transferred to home confinement a day after PPM-PNC coalition’s triumph in September’s presidential election. The terms of his home confinement as seriously eased later on.

Despite a ban on engaging in political activities, Yameen was yet again captured attending an event of the new political party he is forming, People’s National Front (PNF) on Saturday night. Although he did not speak at the podium, Yameen targeted questions at some individuals who spoke at the podium. In this regard, he targeted questions regarding the withdrawal of Indian troops as his lawyer, former president Dr. Mohamed Jameel Ahmed commenced his speech.

“The biggest pledge the current administration, our government, made to the Maldivian people ahead of assuming office was removing the Indian troops based in the Maldives,”

“As we believed, it was announced very early after the inauguration of the president, that the Indian troops will be removed and, in this trajectory, it was communicated with the Indian government,” Yameen said.

The former president went on to say that he became extremely unhopeful when a ministerial official at the President’s Office remarked the removal of the troops would not be easy.

“Two weeks earlier, we heard a minister at the President’s Office, Minister Abdulla Nazim, in this case, remarks as the spokesperson of the President’s Office that the removal of the Indian troops will not be easy,”

“Because the remarks came from a minister at the President’s Office, I became extremely unhopeful. It is not an easy task. No task may be easy” he stressed.

Yameen said although the Maldivian government has claimed President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has formally instructed to withdraw the Indian troops before March 15^th, Indian media outlets, citing the Indian government, has not mentioned anything regarding this. Yameen stated that the Indian government had said no specific deadline had been provided to withdraw the troops.

“Those news outlets say a delegation of ours met with the Maldivian government, but that no discussions were held during that meeting regarding a specific date to withdraw the Indian troops,” Yameen said.

Discussions are presently ongoing between the governments of Maldives and India regarding the withdrawal of Indian troops based in the Maldives under various military agreements. While the first meeting was held in Maldives, the next meeting is scheduled to take place in India.

Commenting on the meeting, the Maldivian Foreign Ministry said both sides discussed agreements executed between both nations and a wide range of issues of mutual interest including the development of cooperation.

“Both sides expressed willingness to intensify cooperation and agreed to fast-track the withdrawal of Indian military personnel,” the Foreign Ministry added.

The President’s Office has previously said President Muizzu has formally asked India to withdraw its military personnel by March 15.

According to the latest government figures, there are 88 Indian military personnel in Maldives.

It was then-leader Yameen who spearheaded PPM-PNC coalition’s ‘India Out’ campaign during its time as the opposition.

He left the coalition less than a week after President Muizzu’s election following disagreements within the coalition following which he commenced efforts to form a new party.

Although Yameen’s PNF has received the go ahead from the Elections Commission (EC) to form the party, they have said they will file for registration once Yameen is freed.

Prior to this, Corrections has threatened to revoke existing easements if he continues to violate the terms of his home confinement. However, no action has been taken against the former president to date despite his continuous engagement in political activities following the warning.