Maldives says country calm despite state of emergency

The Maldives foreign ministry on Wednesday said the country remains calm despite a state of emergency declared earlier in the day.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Dunya Maumoon said the state of emergency is a pre-emptive measure and precautionary action taken by the government in light of several significant security threats that have emerged last week.

"Airports, transport hubs and tourist resorts remain completely secure and we have received no evidence to suggest otherwise," she said.

The Maldives government has said the state of emergency is due to recovery of a large cache of arms. Enditem