President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has returned home after an unofficial trip to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The president departed on the five-day trip to Dubai on Saturday.

Despite this being an unofficial visit, President Solih called on Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of UAE, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan during the trip.

The two discussed the on the ongoing global pandemic, as well as ongoing development projects in the Maldives that are being carried out with the UAE’s assistance, through the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD). They also spoke about ways to enhance cooperation between the two nations further and explored additional areas for collaboration to diversify existing relations.

Also at the meeting, President Solih reiterated appreciation to the UAE Government for the generous assistance provided to the Maldives over the years.

The UAE has been a significant development partner of the Maldives since the late 1970s. Most recently, back in March 2020, the Maldives and ADFD signed a MoU granting USD 50 million as budget support to the Maldives. Further, Velana International Airport and Maafaru International Airport development projects are key infrastructure projects funded by UAE.

This was President Solih’s first trip abroad this year, as well as his first visit out of the country -official or otherwise- since the Covid-19 pandemic.