Chinese research vessel returning to the Maldives

MALE: Two months after spending a week moored at several ports around this archipelago country, a 4,500-tonne, state-of-the-art Chinese research ship has returned to the seas of the Maldives. As per the article published on Friday by the news site Adhadhu.com, the Thilafushi industrial island’s harbor saw the docking of Xiang Yang Hong 03 on Thursday morning.

But “the administration hasn’t revealed the rationale for its comeback.

Days after President Mohamed Muizzu, a pro-China leader headed by the by the People’s National Congress, won the general election and secured 66 out of the 93 seats in the People’s Majlis, the statement claimed, “But the government previously confirmed permission for the ship to dock before its first visit.”
With a ‘India Out’ pledge that propelled him to power last year, Muizzu has further solidified his position with a super majority victory in legislative elections on April 21.
“After avoiding the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), the ship has returned. Consequently, since January, Xiang Yang Hong 03 has been operating within or close to Maldivian territory,” the statement said.

Approximately 7.5 kilometers west of Male, on February 23, the ship had previously moored at the same Thilafushi port.
After spending over a month close to the edge of the Maldives’ EEZ, the cutting-edge vessel finally made landfall in the Maldivian Seas on February 22. After around six days, the ship returned to the EEZ limit.
The Maldives Foreign Ministry said in February that the Xiang Yang Hong 3 was in the country to “make a port call for the rotation of its personnel and replenishment” after a diplomatic request from the Chinese government to the Maldivian administration.
January 23: “The vessel would not be conducting any research while in the Maldivian waters,” the Foreign Ministry said.
The Maldives is strategically vital because of its close proximity to India—it is just 300 nautical miles from the western coast of the continent and only 70 nautical miles from the island of Minicoy in Lakshadweep—as well as because it is situated at the intersection of commercial sea lanes that traverse the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
Meanwhile, information on the kind of vessel Xiang Yang Hong 03 was made available by local media sources in February: The State Oceanic Administration (SOA) of China acquired the 100-meter-long vessel in 2016. At the moment, China only has one 4,500-ton ship. At China’s Pilot Ocean Laboratory, China has been utilizing the ship for “deep sea” and “distant water” studies since 2019.
According to the statement, the vessel may also be utilized for investigations into salinity, microbial genetics, undersea mineral prospecting, and environmental and biological research. It is equipped with data buoys that monitor waves, currents in the water, and other critical environmental data. The story went on to say that the Chinese government would get real-time satellite information from these buoys.
The State Oceanic Administration (SOA) of China, which oversees the Xiang Yang Hong 03, was cited on Friday by Adhadhu.com as saying that the ship is the most advanced vessel made in the nation for maritime research. China claims that the research vessel is multifunctional, indicating that it is outfitted for several purposes.
China claims that the boat has an endurance of 15,000 nautical miles, meaning that it could do its job without help and go 15,000 nautical miles continuously.
Coincidentally, the same Chinese warship was in the vicinity of the trilateral Dosti-16 exercise between India, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka, which was held in the ocean close to Male from February 22 to 25.