Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid has departed to the United States, on an official visit.
According to the Foreign Ministry, the minister is traveling there on the invitation of US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo. He is accompanied by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Khaleel and other officials from the ministry.
The minister is to meet with the US Secretary of State during this visit, as well as other senior officials of the government.
This includes; US Department of State, National Security Council, Office of the US Trade Representative, USAID and Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC).
“Minister Shahid will explore possibilities of further strengthening the close bilateral ties between the Maldives and United States,” said the President’s Office.
After concluding the trip to the US, Shahid will travel to Geneva, Switzerland on a three-day official trip next Monday. From there he will travel to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on February 27.
He is traveling to Geneva to attend the High-Level Segment of the 40th Session of the UN Human Rights Council, while in Abu Dhabi he will join the 46th Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers.
While the foreign minister has made a number of trips since assuming office on November 17, the opposition coalition- Progressive Congress- on Monday announced that they are keeping a close eye on him. They further indicated plans to submit a no-confidence motion against him at the parliament.
