Former President Nasheed concludes Saudi visit
Nasheed administration foreign minister Ahmed Naseem says the visit was ‘successful’
Former President Mohamed Nasheed
Former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed has concluded his trip to the capital city of Saudi Arabia, for which he left on Monday at the invitation of King Salman Al-Saud.
A tweet from the Nasheed administration foreign minister, Ahmed Naseem – who joined the former president on his contentious visit to the kingdom – says the visit was ‘successful’. Details of the visit has not yet been announced.
[President] Nasheed concluded his very successful trip to Riyadh on the invitation of the Saudi Givernment [sic] and is returning to London. The special flight is estimated to land in London at 6.05 this morning Insha Allah [sic]. Grateful thanks to His Majesty and to Crown Prince”, the tweet says.
Critics have expressed concern that Nasheed readily undertook the visit without having acknowledged the allegations against the Saudi government of murdering defector and journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The Maldivian government, which was defeated in September’s polls to a candidate fielded by Nasheed’s party, has declared support for the Saudi government’s denouncing of ‘threats’ undermining their sovereignty and vouched for the kingdom’s adherence to international law.
President-elect Solih was congratulated personally by King Salman through a phone call a few days after interim results of the elections were made public.
