Maldives ultimatum on troops deepens row with India

Bilateral ties between the Maldives and India - that have hit rock-bottom in recent weeks - have taken another tumble after Male formally asked Delhi to withdraw its troops from the island nation by 15 March.

The demand was conveyed at the first meeting of a high-level core group between the two sides held on Sunday in the Maldivian capital of Male.

"Indian military personnel cannot stay in the Maldives. That's the policy of this administration," Abdulla Nazim Ibrahim, the public policy secretary in President Mohamed Muizzu's office, said.

There are about 80 Indian troops in the Maldives - Delhi says they are based there to maintain and operate two rescue and reconnaissance helicopters and a Dornier aircraft it had donated years ago.

Removing the Indian military personnel from the island nation was the election pledge of Mr Muizzu who took over in mid-November. His campaign was centred on 'India out' policy, with a promise to send Indian troops home and reduce Delhi's influence.

On Sunday, Delhi said the officials of the two countries discussed "finding mutually workable solutions to enable continued operation of Indian aviation platforms that provide humanitarian aid and medvac [medical evacuation] services to the people of Maldives".

But the Indian foreign ministry statement did not mention any timeline for the withdrawal of Indian soldiers from the islands.

The Maldives-India meeting took place a day after Mr Muizzu returned from a state visit to China where he met President Xi Jinping and other senior officials. Beijing and Male agreed to elevate their relations to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Ahead of Mr Muizzu's trip, a row had erupted between India and Maldives after three Maldivian deputy