Maldives

:: The ambassador of the crisis-hit Maldives thanked Saudi Arabia on Saturday for the grant of a new $160 million facility for projects in the Indian Ocean island republic.

“I thank King Salman, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the Saudi people for the new financing facility. King Salman has always pledged support for development in the Maldives,” Abdullah Hameed told News Agency.

The Maldivian envoy said that the amount is in addition to $100 million for airport development and the $80 million development of Hulhumale city, pledges made earlier by the Kingdom.

According to a communication from the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), the new financial facility is from the Kingdom and the UAE for the expansion of airports and fisheries.

“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the government of the UAE are following up on the current events in the Republic of Maldives,” the SFD communication said.

It added that the two countries “express their concern about all the disturbing security and stability in the Maldives and note that these events are an internal matter.”

Hameed added that Saudi Arabia and the UAE expressed “hope for peaceful solutions through internal political dialogue between the parties concerned without external interference and within the framework of the Maldivian Constitution.”

This comes after an earlier government invitation to all political parties, calling for constructive dialogue about the country’s political situation.

Hameed said the state of emergency in the Maldives lasts for only 15 days under the island republic’s constitution unless the Maldivian parliament extends it. He added that the emergency ends on Wednesday.

“Under the constitution and in case of emergency, the president is vested with power to ensure stability to ensure the rule of law and uphold the constitution,” the ambassador said.