Maldivian president to visit Pakistan on Oct 20-22 as ties mark 60 years: FO

Several agreements, MoUs covering different areas expected to be signed during the visit

Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu will visit Pakistan from October 20 to 22, with the two countries set to explore wider cooperation in trade, investment, defence and maritime security as they mark 60 years of diplomatic relations, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Sunday.

“The State Visit, the first by a President of Maldives to Pakistan in eleven years, assumes special significance as the two countries commemorate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1966,” the FO said in a statement shared on its X account.

Muizzu will visit Pakistan at the invitation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, accompanied by First Lady Sajidha Mohamed and a high-level delegation comprising cabinet ministers and senior officials, according to the statement.

During the visit, Muizzu will meet President Asif Ali Zardari, who will host a state banquet in his honour, and hold restricted and delegation-level talks with PM Shehbaz.

“The two leaders will review the entire spectrum of bilateral relations and explore avenues for further strengthening cooperation in trade, investment, health, education, tourism, agriculture, defence, maritime security, climate change and people-to-people exchanges,” the statement said.

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“They will also exchange views on regional and international developments of mutual interest,” it added.

The visit will also feature a Pakistan–Maldives Business Forum, "aimed at promoting greater interaction between the business communities of the two countries and exploring new opportunities for trade and investment,” the statement read.

A number of agreements and memorandums of understanding covering different areas of bilateral cooperation are also expected to be signed during the visit.

Highlighting the longstanding ties between the two countries, the statement said, “Pakistan and Maldives enjoy warm and fraternal relations rooted in shared faith, mutual respect, longstanding goodwill and close cooperation at regional and international forums.”

“The forthcoming visit reflects the shared commitment of both countries to further strengthening their bilateral partnership and opening new avenues of mutually beneficial cooperation,” the statement concluded.

The Speaker of the Maldives’ People’s Majlis, Abdul Raheem Abdullah, also visited Pakistan for five days in September at the invitation of National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq. During the visit, the two sides agreed to strengthen parliamentary cooperation and people-to-people contacts.

Abdullah praised Pakistan’s “clear and consistent” stance on Palestine and Kashmir and reaffirmed the Maldives’ commitment to expanding legislative and institutional cooperation with Islamabad.