Hong Kong–Maldives relations refer to foreign relations between

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

and

the Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

History

Historically, both sides had been colonies of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

for a long period of time. Only until 1965, when Maldives gained independence from the United Kingdom, the situation changed. At that time, Hong Kong, still a colony of the United Kingdom, followed the British in diplomacy and immediately recognised the independence of Maldives as well as established relations with the nation.

Modern relations

The Maldivian Honorary Consulate in Hong Kong in

Kowloon Kowloon () is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. With a population of 2,019,533 and a population density of in 2006, it is the most populous area in Hong Kong, compared with Hong Kong Island and t ...

is the official representation of the Maldives in Hong Kong.

Free trade agreement A free-trade agreement (FTA) or treaty is an agreement according to international law to form a free-trade area between the cooperating states. There are two types of trade agreements: bilateral and multilateral. Bilateral trade agreements occur ...

s were negotiated between the two in 2016. The agreements between the two nations include several elements, such as (a) elimination or reduction of

tariffs A tariff is a tax imposed by the government of a country or by a supranational union on imports or exports of goods. Besides being a source of revenue for the government, import duties can also be a form of regulation of foreign trade and polic ...

, (b) liberalisation of non-tariff barriers, (c) flexible disciplines on rules of origin which would facilitate

bilateral trade Bilateral trade or clearing trade is trade exclusively between two states, particularly, barter trade based on bilateral deals between governments, and without using hard currency for payment. Bilateral trade agreements often aim to keep trade def ...

, (d) customs facilitation procedures, (e) liberalisation as well as promotion and protection of investment; (f) liberalisation of trade in services, and (g) the legal and institutional arrangement and dispute settlement mechanism for the Free Trade Agreements. Both coexist as independent member in many economic and cultural international organizations, for example, the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and e ...

. The relations between the two have a focus on economic, social and cultural aspects because Hong Kong is restricted by

Hong Kong Basic Law The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China is a national law of China that serves as the organic law for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). Comprising nine chapters, 160 ...

from concluding military agreements with foreign countries.

References

Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

Bilateral relations of the Maldives Hong Kong and the Commonwealth of Nations {{Bilateralrelations-stub