After a fruitful trip to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates where Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid held productive meetings with several officials, he has returned to Maldives on Friday.

While FM Shahid travelled to the middle-east on Wednesday night in order to participate in the 19th Council of Ministers of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) where a declaration was signed which formalized Maldives membership at the organization, Shahid met several officials on the sidelines of the council, which he addressed on Thursday.

Some of the officials the foreign minister met on the sidelines of the IORA council include Secretary-General of IORA Namvuyo Nokwe, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Madagascar Ratsimandao Tahirimiakadaza, Secretary of State of Seychelles Barry Faure and Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Nakatani Shinichi.

He further held discussions with Minister of State for External Affairs of India Vellamvelly Muraleedharan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of UAE Sheikh Abdulla as well as Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa Dr Naledi Pandor and the Director General of the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), Mohamed Al Suwaidi.

FM Shahid assured SG of IORA of the Maldives full cooperation as a new member of IORA, adding that it will be contributing “substantially” to the ongoing significant discussions concerning the region.

During the meeting with State Minister Muraleedharan, he hinted a trip the foreign minister has planned for India in the near future. Shahid assured Maldives full cooperation towards security and stability in the Indian Ocean, going on to express his gratitude to the Indian government for the continuous support.

Meeting with the UAE Minister, Shahid stated that Maldives and UAE are “close friends”, partners and allies in the region.

In addition, International Relations Minister of South Africa assured the Maldives Minister of the country’s support towards Maldives early accession into the Commonwealth of Nations.

The foreign minister discussed ways to strengthen relations the Maldives has with all of the respective countries, and expressed keenness to further diplomatic relations and explore avenues for future cooperation.

Discussions with the Director General of ADFD touched down on development visions and ways to enhance them and the foreign minister also extensively discussed expanding bilateral ties with Seychelles.

While Shahid led the Maldives delegation on the one-day trip to UAE, during his address at the council he gave assurance that Maldives will be committed to uphold principles and objectives of the IORA Charter.

He also made it a point that Maldives will remain in the forefront to ensure the work to establish a secure, peaceful and progressive Indian Ocean will be maintained for the upcoming generations.

IORA initially came to the decision to grant Maldives membership, at the beginning of this year at an IORA meeting in South Africa where a majority of the member states voted in favor.

Late President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela initially instilled the vision of IORA during a visit to India in 1995 and the organization has been holding annual meetings since establishment in 1997. Complete with 22 coastal states surrounded by the vast Indian Ocean, IORA provides a platform for Foreign Ministers from member states to gather to discuss policies and reach agreements on future strategic directions.