India, July 25 -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally held talks with President Mohamed Muizzu of the Maldives on Friday evening. Modi's two-day trip to the island nation, which comes immediately after his landmark visit to the UK, holds strategic significance as Muizzu had come to power in 2023 on an 'India Out' poll campaign.

Modi landed in Male early Friday, and is the first foreign leader to visit President Muizzu.

India is expected to extend a line of credit worth $565 million to the Maldives, and talks on a Free Trade Agreement are expected to formally begin.

Modi will also remotely inaugurate the expansion of an international airport on the island of Hanimadhoo, which India is helping to finance.

On Saturday, he will attend c...