Maldives Defence Minister Ghassan Maumoon told Parliament that India had responded to the late-January boarding of Maldivian fishing boats by its coast guard, calling it a "miscommunication". He said satellite phone use is legal under Maldivian law and that boat tracking data confirmed the vessels were operating within the Maldivian EEZ.
One outlet so far Only Atoll Times has reported this among the sources we monitor. A gap in what we monitor, not proof that others did not report it.
Defence Minister Ghassan Maumoon said on Monday that India has now responded to the incident where its navy boarded Maldivian fishing vessels inside the country's economic zone, saying that it was a "miscommunication".
Word for word from the report in Atoll Times. Open the report
We have received information from official sources that the boarding activity took place due to a miscommunication
It was due to a miscommunication that the Indian Coast Guard had boarded those vessels without informing its Maldivian couterpart
They boarded because they believe [using satellite phones] is illegal
It's legal in the country. And if you go out fishing further out, it is a must by law
Nothing to compare yet. If another monitored source reports it, its headline appears beside this one.
Late in January, two Indian Coast Guard vessels boarded and searched three local boats fishing in the northernmost part of Maldivian waters, fully armed.
Word for word from the report in Atoll Times. Open the report
The next day, the Maldivian government asked the Indian government to explain the reason for the action
Word for word from the report in Atoll Times. Open the report