Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid is in the United States for the opening of the Maldives embassy in Washington.
Maldives and the US decided to open embassies in 2020 during a visit to Male’ by former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Pompeo with Shahid in the Maldives. -- Photo: US mission to Maldives
All diplomatic communication from the US to the Maldives is currently established through the US embassy in Colombo while Maldives communicates through the Maldives mission at the UN.
In a tweet after arriving in the US, Shahid said in addition to the opening of the embassy, he would also meet the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
"This visit is an opportunity to further strengthen the friendship between our two countries and discuss key issues of mutual interest," he said.
Maldives and the US established diplomatic ties in 1966. The Maldives is opening its embassy in the US for the second time.
The first embassy opened in 2007 but was closed a year later due to financial difficulties.
