Maldives governor Mr. Ahmed Naseer in a recent statement has claimed the island nation owes a total of USD 1.6 billion in loan debt for outstanding transactions between Asian giant China.
The loan amounts were mostly acquired during the tenure of the recent outgoing president Mr. Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom, according to governor Mr. Naseer.
Mr. Naseer while addressing to questions raised during the local parliament’s budget committee sitting, testified that while the outstanding loan to China reaches a total of USD 600 million, financial guarantees levied by Maldives government to various banks originating from the Asian economic giant reached USD 900 million in total.
“… however, we still cannot state the exact value of financial guarantee given by the government. I met with the Chinese ambassador and was able to come to conclusion that the amount reaches approximately to USD 1.6 billion,” Mr. Naseer responded.
The news comes amid claims that Maldivian government is currently under a debt of USD 3 billion to Chinese government.
However, these claims have been rebutted strongly by the Chinese ambassador to Maldives Mr. Jang Lijong.