Maldives is ready to make renewed efforts to revive the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and restore confidence among regional countries, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu said today.

President Muizzu made the remarks during his official visit to Pakistan at the invitation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The President said the Maldives valued SAARC as a platform for regional friendship and cooperation, adding that member states needed to work together to address shared challenges.

“Maldives is ready to make strong and determined efforts to resume SAARC activities. The Maldives believes that rebuilding confidence and humanitarian dialogue are essential for regional relations,” President Muizzu said.

He said the Maldives was prepared to work closely with all SAARC member states to convene a summit as soon as possible.

The last SAARC summit was held in Kathmandu, Nepal, in 2014. The 18th summit brought together leaders from the eight member states: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

The 19th summit was scheduled to take place in Pakistan in 2016 but was postponed after India and several other countries withdrew from the meeting amid tensions between India and Pakistan.

The regional organization has not held a summit since 2014, with strained relations between India and Pakistan remaining a major obstacle to resuming high-level meetings.