Editing Maldives (section)

===Military===
{{main|Maldives National Defence Force}}
[[File:Presidential Address 2024 in Maldives (49).jpg|thumb|left|Maldivian soldiers at a presidential address in February 2024]]

The Maldives National Defence Force is the combined security organisation responsible for defending the security and sovereignty of the Maldives, having the primary task of being responsible for attending to all internal and external security needs of the Maldives, including the protection of the [[Exclusive economic zone|Exclusive Economic Zone]] (EEZ) and the maintenance of peace and security.<ref>{{cite web |title=National Security Policy 2012 |url=http://saruna.mnu.edu.mv/jspui/bitstream/123456789/13946/1/national-security-policy.pdf |website=Digital Repository of Maldives National University |publisher=Government of the Republic of Maldives |pages=221 |date=2012 |access-date=18 May 2024 |archive-date=16 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240416191128/http://saruna.mnu.edu.mv/jspui/bitstream/123456789/13946/1/national-security-policy.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> The MNDF component branches are the [[Maldivian Coast Guard|Coast Guard]], [[MNDF Marine Corps|Marine Corps]], [[Special Forces (Maldives)|Special Forces]], Service Corps, Defence Intelligence Service, Military Police, Corps of Engineers, Special Protection Group, Medical Corps, Adjutant General's Corps, Air Corps, and Fire and Rescue Service. The Maldives has an arrangement with India allowing cooperation on radar coverage.

As a water-bound nation, much of its security concerns life at sea. Almost 99% of the country is covered by sea and the remaining 1% land is scattered over an area of {{convert|800|km|0|abbr=on}} × {{convert|120|km|0|abbr=on}}, with the largest island being not more than {{convert|8|km2|0|abbr=on}}. Therefore, the duties assigned to the MNDF of maintaining surveillance over the Maldives' waters and providing protection against foreign intruders poaching in the EEZ and territorial waters, are immense tasks from both logistical and economic viewpoints. 
The Coast Guard plays a vital role in carrying out these functions. To provide timely security its patrol boats are stationed at various MNDF Regional Headquarters. The Coast Guard is also assigned to respond to maritime distress calls and to conduct search and rescue operations promptly.
In 2019, the Maldives signed the UN [[treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 July 2017 |title=Chapter XXVI: Disarmament&nbsp;– No. 9 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons |url=https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806220546/https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |archive-date=6 August 2019 |access-date=18 October 2019 |website=United Nations Treaty Collection |publisher=[[United Nations]]}}</ref>