A US military plane has spent two days at the Velana International Airport (VIA) in the Maldives.

The US military Beechcraft UC-12F Huron aircraft arrived in the Maldives on April 9 from Colombo.

It left VIA on April 11 and travelled to the Mahé island in the Seychelles.

Since then, the aircraft has made stops in Kenya, Ethiopia, Yemen, Bahrain, Cyprus and Italy.

Many of these countries have US military bases or are US military allies. It is unclear why the Maldives should be on such a list.

The small aircraft is usually used for passenger and cargo transportation and medical evacuations. It is also used to carry senior US military Marine Corps and Navy officials.

However, neither the US Embassy in the Maldives nor the Maldives government has clarified the reason for its stop or the purpose of its two-day trip.