New Delhi, Nov 10 (IANS): President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday extended his greetings and felicitations to the people of Maldives on their Republic Day.
"It gives me great pleasure to convey to your Excellency and to the people of the Republic of Maldives, warm felicitations and good wishes on the occasion of your Republic Day," Mukherjee said in his message to his Maldives counterpart, Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom.
He said: "Our time-tested and historical ties of friendship and cooperation have been focused achieving our common aspirations of peace, stability, progress and development."
"We should endeavour to make our people, especially the youth, more participative in the efforts of the two governments to further our ties of mutual respect and understanding," he said in a statement issued here.
"I am confident that we will see our relationship strengthen in the years to come to the mutual benefit of the peoples of both our countries."
Maldives is a tropical nation in the Indian Ocean and celebrates its Republic Day on November 11. It has a total population of over 345,000, while approximately 29,000 Indians live and work in the Maldives.
