- As Great Salt Lake dries, Utah Republicans pardon Trump climate skepticism
- Amazon activist warns of 'critical situation' ahead of UN forum
- Mourners pay tribute to latest victims of deadly Channel crossing
- Tunisia incumbent Saied set to win presidential vote: exit polls
- Phillies win thriller to level Mets series
- Yu bags first PGA Tour win with playoff win
- PSG held by Nice to leave Monaco clear at top of Ligue 1
- AC Milan fall at Fiorentina after De Gea's penalty heroics
- Lewandowski treble for leaders Barca as Atletico held
- Fresh Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Sucic stunner earns Real Sociedad draw against Atletico
- PSG draw with Nice, fail to reclaim top spot in Ligue 1
- Gudmundsson downs AC Milan after De Gea's penalty heroics for Fiorentina
- 'Yes' vote prevails in Kazakhstan nuclear plant vote: TV
- 'Difficult day': Oct 7 commemorations begin with festival memorial
- Commemorations begin for anniversary of attack on Israel
- Lewandowski hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- 'Nothing gets in way of team,' says Celtics' MVP hopeful Tatum
- India maintain Pakistan stranglehold as Windies cruise at Women's T20 World Cup
- 'We will win!': Mozambique's ruling party confident at final vote rally
- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Florida braces for Milton, FEMA head slams 'dangerous' Helene misinformation
- Postecoglou slams 'unacceptable' Spurs after 'terrible' loss at Brighton
- Marmoush double denies Bayern outright Bundesliga top spot
- Rallies worldwide call for Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire
- Maresca hails Chelsea's 'fighting' spirit after draw with 10-man Forest
- New 'Joker' film, a dark musical, tops N.America box office
- Man Utd stalemate keeps Ten Hag in danger, Spurs rocked by Brighton
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
- Vikings hold off Jets in London to stay unbeaten
- Ahead of attack anniversary, Netanyahu says: 'We will win'
- West Indies cruise to T20 World Cup win over Scotland
- Arshdeep, Chakravarthy help India hammer Bangladesh in T20 opener
- Lewandowski's quickfire hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Man Utd fire another blank in Aston Villa stalemate
- Lewandowski treble powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Russian activist killed on front line in Ukraine
- Openda strike briefly sends Leipzig top of Bundesliga
- Goal-shy Man Utd have to 'step up', says Ten Hag
- India bowl out Bangladesh for 127 in T20 opener
- Madueke rescues Chelsea in draw with 10-man Forest
- Beckett's belief rewarded as Bluestocking storms to Arc glory
- Trump on the stump, Harris hits airwaves in razor-edge US election
- Flash flooding kills three in northern Thailand
- Kaur leads India to victory over Pakistan in Women's T20 World Cup
- Juventus held by Cagliari after late penalty drama
- In France's Marseille, teen 'stabbed 50 times' then burned alive
- Ruthless Gauff beats Muchova in straight sets to win China Open
- India restrict Pakistan to 105-8 in Women's T20 World Cup
- England target repeat of Pakistan Test whitewash
Cash-strapped Maldives says no need for IMF bailout
The Maldives says its financial troubles are "temporary" and the luxury tourist destination has no plans to seek an International Monetary Fund bailout after warnings of a possible sovereign default.
Foreign minister Moosa Zameer said the Indian Ocean archipelago, best known for its upscale resorts and celebrity visitors, was pressing ahead with tax hikes to meet its debt servicing obligations.
"We have bilateral partners who are very sensitive to our needs and our situation," Zameer told reporters in Colombo on Friday night.
"I seriously don't think it is a time where we will be right now engaging with the IMF... The issue that we have is very temporary because currently we are having a dip in reserves."
He said tax reforms, along with the rationalisation of state-owned enterprises, would improve liquidity.
Zameer was visiting Sri Lanka along with Finance Minister Mohamed Shafeeq to meet with local central bankers and other officials.
China and India are the two largest bilateral lenders to the Maldives, a tiny nation of 1,192 tiny coral islands in the Indian Ocean scattered across the equator.
President Mohamed Muizzu came to power a year ago on the back of a campaign to evict a small contingent of Indian troops deployed in the Maldives and pursue closer ties with China.
- 'Rough patches' -
After the removal of the troops, the two nations have mended fences and had "cleared misunderstandings," Zameer said.
"At the start of our government, we did have some rough patches, you know," he added.
"We have fantastic bilateral relations with both China and India... Both countries continue to support us."
China has pledged more funding since last year's victory by Muizzu, who thanked the country for its "selfless assistance" for development funds on a state visit to Beijing shortly after taking power.
Official data showed the Maldives' foreign debt at $3.37 billion in the first quarter of this year, equating to around 45 percent of gross domestic product.
China accounted for about 20 percent of the external debt while India owned just under 18 percent.
Zameer's visit came days after Moody's Ratings downgraded the Maldives' credit rating by one notch to Caa2, considered a high credit risk.
Fellow ratings agency Fitch downgraded the Maldives in June, saying that dwindling foreign currency reserves posed a financial risk.
It said the government's debt servicing obligations, amounting to $409 million this year, would add to severe stress.
F.Bennett--AMWN