The Maldives’ Foreign Minister Abdullah Shahid separately met the Chinese ambassador to the Maldives, Zhang Lizhong, and Indian High Commissioner Sanjay Sudhir, according to Edition news. 

The country’s Finance Minister Ibrahim Ameer also participated in the meetings that took place on Tuesday. According to a release by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the ministers discussed the economic situation of the Maldives and the COVID-19 response with the Chinese envoy. 

The Maldives underscored the importance of “China as a friend” and its contribution to overcoming the repercussions caused by the pandemic, reads the statement. 

While in the meeting with the Indian envoy, Foreign Minister Abdullah Shaid said, they have discussed various development projects. 

“As the end of the year approaches, work on the number of small and big projects continues! High Commissioner Sudhir and I took stock of the progress to date, and discussed ways to further accelerate implementation,” tweeted Abdullah Shahid. 

The Maldives maintains a tough balancing in its foreign relations with two Asian giants. In recent months, the ruling dispensation in the country has come under domestic political pressure over its growing ties with India. The opposition parties cornered the Maldivian government, accusing it of selling sovereignty to India. 

While during the reign of former President Abdullah Yameen, the country had gone too close to China and damaged its relation with India to a historic low. Though the ties with India recovered significantly since the current administration took charge in November 2018.