Pakistan embassy responds to report by RaajjeMV journalist

The Embassy of Pakistan to the Maldives has released a statement in response to a report written by a RaajjeTV journalist.

According to the statement released by the embassy on Friday, Pakistan denies enforcing any policies that interfere with the internal affairs of the Maldives as suggested in the report.

The statement was issued in response to an article titled "Is Pakistan meddling in the affairs of the Maldives?" which was published on Thursday.

The statement declares that, unlike other neighboring countries, Pakistan does not have any intentions of dominating the region or have any policies calculated to meddle in the domestic affairs of any country, especially of a Muslim neighbor such as the Maldives.

Furthermore, the embassy denied the notion that Pakistan maintains a secret service presence in the Maldives.

They go on to explain that the embassy regularly sponsors visits between the two nations in order to boost bilateral ties and improve people to people contact. Likewise, the embassy highlighted that the most recent visits to Pakistan have been by delegations from the current administration.

Additionally, they note that Pakistan has extended invitations to President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and Speaker of Parliament, Mohamed Nasheed to meet their counterparts in the government of Pakistan.

The embassy accuses the report of attempting to "draw a wedge between the two countries" and of basing the content on "false conspiracy theories"

Moreover, the statement further denies allegations in the report claiming that both Pakistan and China have criticized the current Maldivian administration via social media. They further accuse the reporter of being sponsored by "anti-Pakistan forces" attempting to "tarnish the image of Pakistan".

The embassy also claims that the main point of the article, which referred to the many crimes reportedly committed by the Premium Intelligence Agency of Pakistan, is baseless and unfounded.

Nonetheless, the embassy reiterated Pakistan's commitment to maintaining a positive relationship with the Maldives based on the two countries' shared Islamic identity. They also emphasized that Pakistan would "never indulge in any activity detrimental to the safety, security, and sovereignty of the Maldives or its government".