Minister of Foreign Affairs Moosa Zameer has given his assurance that the government of Maldives remain committed to further enhance the partnership with the government of the United States of America.

He said this during a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held as part of the visit, on Wednesday.

Zameer departed to the U.S. on an official visit from Velana International Airport (VIA) on Monday. He touched down in Washington D.C. on Monday evening.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed that FM Zameer’s trip is from June 24 – 27.

Taking to social media platform ‘X’, FM Zameer expressed delight in meeting the U.S. Secretary of State and reaffirmed the island nation’s commitment to further strengthen the partnership between the Maldives and U.S. in tackling climate change, promoting democracy and cooperation in maritime security.

Blinken in a post on ‘X’ revealed that discussions revolved around cooperation on climate, economic growth as well as maritime security.

The Maldivian foreign minister also met the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development Samantha Power as well. During the meeting, he expressed appreciation for the contributions USAID has made towards the development journey of Maldives.

He also reaffirmed commitment to enhance and diversify the partnership.

As part of the visit, Zameer will be sitting down for talks with senior government officials regarding efforts to further enhance the longstanding ties of friendship and cooperation between the Maldives and U.S., as well as to reaffirm commitment to multilateralism.

In Washington D.C., FM Zameer met Blinken, Power and senior officials of the U.S. government. 

Further, he will also participate in an interactive discussion at the prestigious Council of Foreign Relations.

He will also meet with the Maldivian community residing in Washington D.C., New York and New Jersey. 

FM Zameer will head to New York to meet Secretary General of the United Nations António Guterres and Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs of the UN Li Junhua. 

In addition to this, the Maldivian foreign minister will meet tour operators and travel advisors based in New York.

Bilateral Secretary Dr. Hala Hameed and Senior Undersecretary Hassan Hussain Shihab are accompanying the foreign minister on this brief visit.

The visit carries the purpose of strengthening bilateral relations and ensuring that the Maldives pays close attention to international issues, according to the ministry.

His visit comes amid mounting pressure from the U.S. over the Maldives’ decision to ban passports from Israel.

Israel continues to commit inhumane atrocities on the innocent people of Palestine in Gaza and while many Maldivians had expressed hope that the concerns of the Maldivian people would be raised with the U.S. government officials as Israel's closest ally, it is worth noting that Blinken did not shed light on the matter during the meeting.

As soon as the news of Maldives’ decision to ban Israeli passports made international headlines, there was a heated debate at the U.S. parliament, with U.S. parliamentarians having prepared a bill to the congress, seeking to take action and halt aid to the Maldives if the island nation carries through with the decision to ban Israeli passports.

The bill on banning Israeli passports was accepted by the People’s Majlis, and forwarded to the 241 Committee in early June. The bill was submitted by the former ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)’s MP for South Galolhu constituency Meekail Naseem, in a bid to amend the Immigration Act, to ban the entry of tourists with Israeli passports into the Maldives.