Action will be pursued against those spreading falsehoods about MNDF: Chief of Defense Force

Chief of Defense Force Major General Abdulla Shamaal has declared that the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) will be seeing legal action against those spreading falsehoods in relation to the force.

MG Ahmed Shamaal made the remarks while speaking at a press conference held on Tuesday, to clarify doubts on behalf of the public regarding the hotly debated Uthuru Thila Falhu (UTF) Harbor Development Project. MG Shamaal said that MNDF took the issue very seriously, and that they were already pursuing ways to seek action against those perpatrating misinformation regarding the force's operations.

Speaking at the press, Director General of the National Counter Terrorism Center (NCTC) Brigadier General Zakariyya Mansoor said that despite efforts on behalf of incendiary parties, the people of the Maldives still trusted MNDF and their assurances regarding the UTF agreement, false copies of which have been circulating among social media in recent days.

MNDF has since clarified that the drafts and copies of the UTF Harbor Development Project agreement 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 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.

In Tuesday's press, MG Shamal confirmed that the Maldives would have full jurisdiction over the UTF Harbor. and that the agreement for the project had been drafter after many discussions with high-ranking MNDF officials. He went on to clarify that armed foreign military personnel being stationed at UTF had not been part of the agreement.

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. Discussions on the project were conducted as early as 2013, and Major General Shamaal expressed disappointment that parties who were fully aware of the details of the agreement were currently spreading misinformation to incite the public regarding the matter now, by reporting the agreement's contents to be dangerous to national security and the Maldives' sovereignty as a nation.

The development of the UTF Harbor will take place over three years and will be spread across two phases. The agreement period signed for the project is 15 years.