MNDF confirms UTF Harbor agreements leaked on social media as fake

The Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) has confirmed that the Uthuru Thila Falhu (UTF) Harbor Development Project agreement drafts currently being circulated across social media platforms are fake, and has issued an advisory to refrain from using illegitimate documents to hinder Maldives' relationships with neighboring countries.

Former Home Minister Umar Naseer has also shared a draft document which depicts an agreement between Maldives and India, whereby Indian military personnel will be permitted to station at the UTF Harbor. Some media outlets have also been reporting the agreement's contents to be dangerous to national security and the Maldives' sovereignty as a nation. These claims include reports that Indian military personnel and land and sea military vessels will be able to station freely at the UTF Harbor, in addition to being able to use the UTF Harbor as a communications station. False documents detailing the agreement being circulated by media also state that the agreement had been signed for a period of 30 years.

The Maldives National Defense Force has since clarified that the drafts and copies of the UTF Harbor Development Project agreement currently being circulated across social media platforms are fake. MNDF have also issued an advisory to refrain from circulating illegitimate documents that might hinder Maldives' relationships with neighboring countries.

The fake documents detailing provisions for the UTF Harbor Development Project being circulated among media comes at a time the Maldives' political opposition has been working to politicize the UTF Harbor development project with polarizing "IndiaOut" sentiments.

The UTF Harbor project aimed at improving the Maldives military capabilities, and will be developed as the "Sifavaru" Coast Guard Harbor at Uthuru Thila Falhu of Male' atoll. MNDF has previously assured that no foreign military personnel will be stationed at UTF, detailing that only Maldivian military officers and employees will be working at the Harbor. The UTF Harbor will be used to dock and repair Maldivian vessels, in lieu of incurring huge costs in doing so abroad.

The UTF Harbor Development Project is being initiated under the Defense Action Plan on Defense Cooperation signed between Ex-President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayyoom and the Indian government in 2016.