Seychelles President arrives in India amid breakdown in naval base plan

Seychelles President Danny Faure, who is on a visit to India, arrived at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel airport on Friday.

The visit comes on the heels of his government's announcement earlier this month that a joint project with India to develop a naval base at Assumption Island would not move forward.

Faure would visit the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad and the Sabarmati Ashram tomorrow, state government officials said.

He would visit IIM-A in the morning and hold a meeting with the director of the prestigious institute, Errol D'Souza, who is a long-time friend of his.

Faure would also visit the Gujarat Forensic Science University (GFSU) in Gandhinagar before leaving for Goa today.

At GFSU, apart from interacting with university officials, Faure would meet 18 police officers from the Seychelles who were undergoing training there.

Governor OP Kohli would host a lunch for him before he departs from Gujarat, officials said.

There had been growing political opposition in the Seychelles to a pact it signed with India in 2015 to develop a naval facility on Assumption Island which would have given India a strategic advantage in the Indian Ocean Region.

At a press conference on June 4, Faure had said the Seychelles would develop military facilities on the island on its own, and the project with India "will not move forward".

PTI