New Delhi Apr 19 PTI Three weeks after India handed over a coastal radar system to the Maldives Navy chief Admiral R Hari Kumar has met Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and other senior leaders of the island nation in its capital Male with a focus on further boosting the bilateral defence tiesOn his first visit abroad after taking charge as the Navy chief over four-and-a-half months ago Admiral Kumar held extensive talks with Maldivian Defence Minister Mariya Ahmed Didi and Major General Abdulla Shamaal the Chief of Defence Staff of the island nation officials saidAfter his meeting with Solih the Indian High Commission in Male tweeted that the Chief of the Naval Staff reiterated Indias commitment to enhancing maritime cooperation with the Maldives for a safe and secure Indian Ocean regionAdmiral Kumar began his three-day trip to the Maldives on MondayThe Navy chief also met Maldivian Foreign Minister Abdulla ShahidReaffirming Indias commitment to the capacity-building efforts of the island nation Admiral Kumar presented a consignment of engineering equipment for further sustenance of ships belonging to the Maldives National Defence Forces MNDF the officials saidHe also unveiled the first navigation chart jointly produced by India and the Maldives and handed over certain hydrography equipment to consolidate the organic capabilities of the MNDF the officials saidThe Navy chief hosted a reception onboard Indian Naval Ship Sutlej on Monday in honour of the Maldivian defence minister and the leadership of the MNDF they addedINS Sutlej is currently deployed in the Maldives for undertaking a joint hydrographic survey under the provisions of an agreement on hydrographic cooperationThis visit further consolidated the strong and long-standing bilateral relations between two close maritime neighbours and also identified new avenues of expanding the scope of bilateral cooperation in the defence and maritime domains an Indian Navy official saidAbout Admiral Kumars talks with Didi the Maldivian Defence Ministry said the discussions focussed on ways to further boost the cooperation between the MNDF and the Indian Navy in the areas of maritime information sharing maritime domain awareness and capacity-building initiativesIt said Didi highlighted that the India-Maldives defence and security partnership is at its pinnacle and thanked India for providing swift and unconditional support to the Maldives at all timesMinister Mariya noted the promptness with which India submitted the Detailed Project Report DPR of the Coast Guard harbour and dockyard to the Maldives the review of which will be completed soon the Maldivian Defence Ministry said in a statementMinister Mariya expressed appreciation for the continuous assistance and support rendered by the Indian Navy in maintenance and repair of MNDF Coast Guard fleet it addedExternal Affairs Minister S Jaishankar handed over the coastal radar system to the Chief of the Maldives National Defence Force Major General Shamaal last monthIndia and the Maldives share common perspectives on maritime security issues in the Indian Ocean and have been working together closely PTI MPB RC