Maldives declines joint mega naval drill with India

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India's eight-day-long mega naval exercise, named "Milan," began on Tuesday without the Maldives, after the country declined New Delhi's invitation to participate.

The Maldive's move to be excluded from the military drills is seen as Male's way to signal its displeasure at India's decision not to intervene in the ongoing crisis in the South Asian island nation.

The "no" by Male has overtaken the significance of the larger might of the exercise.

The Maldivian ambassador to India last week declined the invitation to participate in the naval exercise due to the emergency situation in his country, but asserted that the two nations enjoy a history of excellent defense and military cooperation, a tradition which they are confident will endure and continue indefinitely.

The statement added that the participation, if accepted by Maldives naval officers, would have been as observers only.

Opposition supporters protest against the government's delay in releasing their jailed leaders despite a Supreme Court order, in Male, the Maldives, February 4, 2018. /VCG Photo

The recent crisis in the Maldives has turned into an international one.

Exiled former President Mohamed Nasheed tweeted after a state of emergency was declared in the country that India should send its envoy to the Maldives to restore order. India decided not to interfere, though it said it is keeping its eye on the state of domestic affairs in the Maldives.

Even as India expected the emergency to end, current Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen extended the state of emergency by 30 days.

Starting Tuesday, India is hosting naval forces from at least 16 countries for the joint exercises at the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Till now India has conducted many multilateral groupings in the Indian Ocean region, including the Malabar exercises.

Indian soldiers participate in a war exercise during a two-day "Know Your Army" exhibition in Ahmedabad, India, August 19, 2016. /Reuters Photo

The Milan exercise is not new, having been held nine times already.

The first one was in 1995 with only four navies – Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Sri Lanka. The current one is being held with the participation of at least 16 navies, including from Australia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam.

The theme of this year's exercise is "In Pursuit of Maritime Good Order: Need for Comprehensive Information Sharing Apparatus."

The exercise, which takes place once every two years, provides an opportunity to participating navies to nurture stronger ties in dealing with various security challenges.