President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has said that the Maldives is not any particular country's backyard, but an independent, sovereign nation.

He added that China will not interfere in the affairs of the Maldives.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday evening after concluding his visit to China at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, he said China fully supports the territorial integrity of the Maldives and the country has a large exclusive economic zone irrespective of the size of the islands.

"Maldives resides in a large part of this ocean, and it is not owned by a particular country. This ocean belongs to all the countries in the region and a larger part of the ocean does not belong to any country at all. We are not any country's backyard, but an independent nation," he said.

He said Maldives' territorial integrity is deeply respected by China and the latter will not interfere in internal matters at all, adding that during the previous government's time, Maldives needed permission to take any sort of action at all.

"The people of the country do not want that. Therefore, no country should interfere in the internal affairs of another country while working on improving relations. China respects our boundaries and we will maintain close relations with all the countries that believe in and respect our values," President Dr. Muizzu said.

The President further said that the relationship between China and the Maldives is very exemplary and the relationship between the two countries is based on four basic principles, values, and that the One China Policy is fully accepted by this government.