Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed said Thursday he was prepared to talk to the opposition to end the current political deadlock, according to dpa. The announcement came a day after parliament's speaker cancelled sittings until an opposition leader was released from detention by the armed forces. Nasheed was open to a dialogue with the opposition to create "immediate and long-term solutions," a statement from the president's office said. The tourism-dependent country has been in turmoil since the cabinet resigned on June 29 in protest at blocking tactics by the parliamentary opposition, which has a slim majority in the Maldivian Majlis. The cabinet was restored on July 8, but fresh protests followed after the arrest of opposition leader Abdulla Yameen. Parliamentary Speaker Abdulla Shahid said Wednesday that parliamentary sittings would be cancelled until Yameen was released. Robert Blake, US assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia, visited the Maldives Thursday to mediate between the government and opposition leaders.
