Efforts to freeze out Chinese investment in power projects in South Asia will do little to improve India’s economic or soft power in the region. Likewise, undermining the development of a liberal market for cross-border power trade in the region limits gains towards energy security.
The pro-China faction is back in power after the Maldives presidential election but it won’t be a simple swing to an anti-India foreign policy, not least because Chinese projects have left Maldives debt-laden and India is still its main security partner.