Secretary of State Antony Blinken met today with Maldivian Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid. The Secretary expressed his support for deepening bilateral relations, most notably with the re-establishment of a Maldives embassy in Washington, DC, and the prospective establishment of U.S. Embassy Malé.
He thanked the Maldives for their proactive leadership in the Summit for Democracy and noted that Maldives remains a leader in the region on promoting and strengthening democracy. The Secretary reiterated our joint commitment to economic growth, adapting to a changing climate, defense cooperation, free and fair elections, and open and free media in the Maldives.
Secretary Blinken added that the United States looks forward to enhancing people-to-people engagement in higher education with Maldives, and to growing the bilateral ties between our nations.