New foreign envoys present credentials to president

Three more foreign envoys have presented their credentials to President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.

While the new country representatives of New Mexico, Germany and Rwanda presented their credentials to the president last week, the three new envoys that submitted their letters of credence on Sunday are; new Cuban Ambassador Andrés Marcelo González Garrido, South Korean Ambassador Jeon Woonjin and the new Ambassador of Vietnam to Maldives Thi Thanh Truc.

All three called on the president separately, after their respective ceremonies.

Congratulating the new ambassador on the appointment during the meeting with Woonjin, President Solih thanked South Korea for their support towards the Maldives’ candidature during the 76th Nations General Assembly (UNGA) elections in June.

He also thanked the Korean government for the continued development assistance provided to Maldives, and expressed his appreciation for the generous contributions by the Government of Korea as relief assistance provided to the Maldives during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The president and ambassador also discussed issues of mutual interest for both countries, such as climate change, and assured commitment to working together to further strengthen the bilateral relations between the Maldives and South Korea.

Welcoming Garrido to Maldives and congratulating him on the appointment as ambassador, President Solih thanked him for Cuba's "generous" assistance to the health sector and higher education sector of the Maldives.

Noting that the Cuban government has been providing scholarships for Maldivian students from the Latin American School of Medicine, Solih also noted that the Maldives had received the services of Cuban doctors in the past.

Both sides discussed exploring avenues to further expand scholarship opportunities for Maldivian students at Cuban institution, during Sunday's meeting.

While Cuba had also supported Maldives in the UNGA elections held earlier, the president thanked them for the support as well.

Ambassador Garrido assured Cuba's commitment to continue as a friend and a partner to the Maldives, and highlighted that the Cuban Parliament also stands ready to extend cooperation with the Maldives Parliament.

Both parties expressed optimism that future years will witness strengthened cooperation on issues of mutual importance.

While the president welcomed Ambassador Truc to the Maldives and congratulated her on the commencement of her term at the ceremony, he highlighted that Maldives and Vietnam will mark the 46th year of diplomatic relations this year at the meeting held after.

Further noting that the two countries have made positive strides in this partnership, Solih said that he hopes for further bilateral consultations and exchange of high-level visits to solidify the partnership further and explore new avenues of cooperation.

The president also expressed appreciation for the generous contribution by the Vietnamese government to manage the Covid-19 pandemic in the Maldives.

He also expressed hope to explore new possibilities for increasing trade, investments and other areas of cooperation between the two countries, while also requesting for Vietnam 's support for the Maldives to achieve observer status in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Speaking at the meeting, the ambassador assured Vietnam's commitment to continue in its role as a friend to the Maldives, highlighting that Vietnam stands ready to extend support and assistance to the Maldives in every way possible.