Maldives Stands By India To Block The Bid To Hold SAARC Summit In Pakistan This Year

The Maldives has stood by India against Pakistan once again, by assisting India to block the proposal to hold the 19th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit in Pakistan, reports The Times of India.

The proposal had come up during the SAARC Foreign Ministers' meeting which was held on bygone Thursday (24 September). However, siding with India, Maldives' FM Abdulla Shahid pressed for the creation for a conducive environment to build the consensus on convening the 19th SAARC Summit.

It should be noted that this is not the first instance when the Maldives has stood by India. Back in May, during a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC), Maldives had refused to support any action by the body which tried to single out India for any islamophobia. back then, Maldives had pressed that singling out India for islamophobia will not only be factually incorrect but also detrimental to religious harmony in South Asia.

The SAARC Summit has remained stalled since 2016 when Pakistan had to hold the summit. The Summit had been suspended then as a result of India's call to boycott the event on account pf Pakistan backed terror attack at Uri.