India will not intervene in the Maldives and hopes China will reciprocate by not crossing certain “lines of legitimacy”, said a senior government official.

In an interview with The Indian Express, the official said “the days when India believed that South Asia was its primary sphere of influence and that it could prevent other powers, such as China, from expanding its own clout are long gone”.

“India cannot claim sole proprietorship of the region. We can’t stop what the Chinese are doing, whether in the Maldives or in Nepal, but we can tell them about our sensitivities, our lines of legitimacy. If they cross it, the violation of this strategic trust will be upon Beijing.”

Indian Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale is to travel to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh soon, but is not expected to visit the Maldives.

Reports have been made on the straining relationship between the two neighboring countries. While India has maintained closed relations with Maldives since its independence, President Abdulla Yameen’s administration has been cozying up to India’s regional rival China and some experts have said that Maldives signing an FTA with China late last year had taken India by surprise.

India has also expressed concern over the political crisis in the Maldives, which was triggered after the Supreme Court on February 1 ordered the release of political prisoners and reinstatement of opposition MPs. Refusing to implement the order, President Yameen declared a state of emergency on February 5 and arrested two Supreme Court justices, former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, and other opposition members.

After the month-long state of emergency ended, India welcomed the move and called to implement the Supreme Court order.

Responding to the call, the Maldives government stated that the recent political developments are an internal political matter and therefore should remain as a matter to be resolved internally.