Seychelles strengthens its role as a neutral mediator in an increasingly divided international order
Seychelles, a small island state in the Indian Ocean, is increasingly clearly seeking to build its foreign policy on a principle that, in official communication and public appearances, is summed up by the formula “friend to all, enemy to none”. That message is not just a diplomatic phrase intended for protocol meetings. At a time when international relations are being shaped ever more strongly through rivalry among great powers, wars, disruptions in trade and security tensions at sea, Seychelles is trying to turn its size into an advantage: not to enter into bloc divisions, but to maintain open channels toward different political and economic centers of power.
Such an approach has in recent days once again come into the spotlight after the statements of President Patrick Herminie during his working visit to Moscow in April 2026. In talks and public appearances in Russia, the thesis was emphasized that Seychelles wants to develop relations with different partners, without breaking ties with some in order to satisfy others. Official descriptions of the meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin point to the expansion of bilateral cooperation in several sectors, while at the same time other diplomatic documents and statements show the continuity of relations with China, the United States of America, the European Union and regional organizations.
Neutrality as an instrument of survival, not passivity
The policy of neutrality among small island states is often wrongly interpreted as withdrawal from international relations. In the case of Seychelles, it is rather a matter of active diplomacy that seeks to avoid dependence on one center of power. A country with about 115 islands, located on important maritime routes of the Indian Ocean, does not have the demographic, military or economic weight of large states, but it has a geostrategic position that is interesting to actors from multiple directions. Precisely for that reason, maritime security, tourism, climate diplomacy, fisheries, investments and the issue of air connectivity are intertwined in its foreign policy.
Official strategic documents of Seychellois diplomacy emphasize the need for foreign policy to adapt to the changed international environment after the pandemic, but also to the long-term challenges of small island states. Within that framework, neutrality is not conceived as the absence of a position, but as a way of preserving room for maneuver. Seychelles can cooperate with Washington on maritime security and the fight against smuggling, develop bilateral projects and exchange with Beijing, maintain political and economic contacts with Moscow, and build mechanisms for development, ocean protection and regional stability with European and African partners.
Such a policy is especially visible in relation to topics that go beyond narrow bilateral interests. Climate change is not an abstract issue for Seychelles, but a security, economic and existential challenge. Rising sea levels, the protection of coral reefs, the preservation of fish stocks and sustainable tourism are directly connected with income, food, jobs and spatial planning. That is why Seychellois diplomacy often positions itself as the voice of small island states seeking greater influence in global debates on oceans and climate financing.
Relations with the USA, Russia and China without simple alignment
The United States of America established diplomatic relations with Seychelles in 1976, after it gained independence from the United Kingdom. In its description of bilateral relations, the U.S. State Department highlights cooperation in maritime security, combating drug trafficking and other forms of smuggling, and environmental protection. These are areas in which the interests of Washington and Victoria, the capital of Seychelles, naturally overlap: the Indian Ocean is important for international trade, energy security and the fight against transnational crime.
At the same time, Seychelles is not severing relations with Russia either. Official Seychellois sources reported that President Herminie spoke with President Putin in Moscow on 22 April 2026, with both sides emphasizing their intention to strengthen cooperation. According to available statements, the talks covered tourism, investments, transport connectivity, air connectivity, food security and other sectors connected with economic resilience. A day earlier, in an interview with the Russian television channel RT, Herminie spoke about Seychellois foreign policy, relations with Russia, global energy stability and the pressures faced by small island states.
China is another important partner in that diplomatic equation. The Seychellois Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that in March 2025 representatives of Seychelles and China discussed deepening the bilateral partnership. These contacts build on the long-standing relations between the two states, which include political communication, development projects and cultural exchange. For Seychelles, the Chinese presence is important because of investments and broader Asian connectivity, but the official tone is not presented as a move away from other partners, but as part of a branched network of relations.
Tourism as soft power and an economic support
Seychelles is not only a diplomatic point on the map of the Indian Ocean, but also a recognizable tourist destination. The National Bureau of Statistics Seychelles lists tourism as an important pillar of the economy, and the statistical system tracks visitor arrivals by country of residence, purpose of travel, average length of stay, type of accommodation and other indicators. In a country where natural landscapes, beaches, marine ecosystems and exclusive accommodation are key elements of the brand, tourism also has a diplomatic function: it creates everyday links with different markets and reduces dependence on one group of guests or one political region.
Precisely because of this, the policy of “friend to all” cannot be separated from the tourism strategy. A state that wants to attract visitors, investors, airlines and hotel operators from multiple parts of the world must maintain a stable international image. Neutrality acts here as a guarantee of predictability. Unlike states that tie themselves strongly to one geopolitical bloc, Seychelles is trying to communicate that it is open to cooperation with different markets, provided that national interests, environmental limits and development priorities are respected.
Tourism, however, also carries risks. Debates on land use, foreign investments, the protection of sensitive areas and the fair distribution of benefits constantly return to the political space. During the 2025 presidential elections, the Associated Press reported that issues of environmental degradation, drug addiction and controversial land arrangements were among the topics that strongly influenced public debate. This shows that international openness in the Seychellois case must be aligned with the domestic expectations of the population and concern for national sovereignty.
The blue economy as the center of international identity
One of the most important reasons why Seychelles has visibility greater than its territorial and demographic size is the concept of the blue economy. The government and international institutions have for years presented Seychelles as an example of a state trying to connect economic development with ocean conservation. According to official data from the Seychellois ministry responsible for the environment and climate change, in 2020 the country declared 30 percent of its vast exclusive economic zone as marine protected areas, and before that it had been connected with the first model of debt swap for nature conservation and the first sovereign blue bonds.
The World Bank, in its materials on the Seychellois blue bond, states that the country’s economy is highly dependent on the ocean and that fisheries, after tourism, are one of the key sectors. Such a structure explains why climate and ocean diplomacy are at the center of Seychellois foreign policy. It is not only about protecting nature as a value in itself, but about managing resources without which the state cannot maintain income, employment and food security.
The blue economy also gives Seychelles international recognition in forums in which small states often find it difficult to stand out. When financing ocean protection, sustainable fisheries, climate adaptation or marine protected areas are discussed, Seychelles can present itself as a laboratory of policies that other states are only beginning to consider. This strengthens its diplomatic negotiating position: the small state does not appear only as a recipient of aid, but as an actor that offers experience, models and a political message.
A new president and continuity of the foreign-policy line
Patrick Herminie assumed the presidency after the 2025 elections, in which he defeated then-President Wavel Ramkalawan in the second round. The Associated Press reported that Herminie won 52.7 percent of the vote, and Ramkalawan 47.3 percent. The political change was significant because the United Seychelles party, to which Herminie belongs, returned to power after a period in which it had been outside executive authority. Still, strong continuity is visible in foreign policy: Seychelles continues to emphasize openness toward different partners, avoidance of hostilities and a pragmatic search for benefits for national development.
That continuity does not mean that there are no changes in emphasis. Herminie’s appearances in Moscow and announced visits to other partners show a more active attempt at political positioning at a time when small states are trying to compensate for the decline or uncertainty of traditional development flows. The official announcement of working visits to Russia and Abu Dhabi in April 2026 stated that the topics would include tourism, investments, transport and air connectivity, and food security. These are concrete issues that directly affect the state’s ability to remain connected, supplied and economically stable.
For external observers, it is important to distinguish neutrality from an equal attitude toward all issues. Seychelles can cooperate with states that are in tense relations with each other, but that does not mean that international obligations, votes in multilateral organizations or pressure from partners disappear. Precisely therein lies the sensitivity of such a policy: the more divided the international order becomes, the harder it is to maintain balance without arousing the suspicions of one side or the other.
Can a small island state be a space for dialogue?
The idea that Seychelles could be a neutral venue for diplomatic talks rests on several elements. The state has an internationally recognizable, politically relatively unobtrusive profile, it is located outside the main Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian crisis points, and it maintains relations with different actors. Its tourism infrastructure and image as a safe destination further support the perception of the country as a space where meetings can be held away from the everyday political noise of major capitals.
Still, the possibility of a mediating role should not be overestimated. There is no confirmation that Seychelles currently has a formal mandate or a concrete process that would turn it into the center of major peace negotiations. It is more precise to say that its foreign policy creates preconditions for such a type of role if the need for it appears and if the relevant parties accept it. In diplomacy, the size of a state is often not decisive, but rather trust, discretion and the ability to be an acceptable interlocutor to different sides.
For Seychelles, the everyday, less spectacular benefit of such a position is perhaps even more important. Maintaining multiple diplomatic channels helps in attracting investments, opening markets, negotiating air routes, obtaining development support and strengthening the position in climate negotiations. In a world in which smaller states are often expected to align themselves, the Seychellois strategy seeks to show that pragmatic neutrality can also be a form of active protection of the national interest.
The balance between great powers and the vulnerability of small states
The Seychellois example shows the broader dilemma of small states in the 21st century. They must cooperate with the great powers because without external markets, capital, technology and security partnerships they can hardly respond to their own challenges. At the same time, they must ensure that such cooperation does not grow into dependence that limits political autonomy. In the case of Seychelles, that dilemma is further intensified by the fact that tourism, fisheries, the marine environment and transport connectivity are directly exposed to global crises, from wars and sanctions to climate disruptions and changes in energy prices.
That is why the policy of “friend to all, enemy to none” can be read as an attempt to avoid the most costly scenario: losing access to one group of partners because of moving closer to another. It does not eliminate risks, but distributes them. In practice, this means that Seychelles must constantly explain its own moves, maintain credibility in multilateral forums and convince different partners that openness toward one side is not a hostile act toward another.
If that strategy succeeds, Seychelles could remain an example of a state that compensates for its limited size with diplomatic flexibility, ecological profiling and economic openness. If it does not succeed, the same position could become a source of pressure, especially in periods when great powers increasingly tolerate gray zones less and more often demand clear alignments. For now, according to available official statements and recent diplomatic activities, Seychelles is trying to preserve precisely that gray zone as a space of its own autonomy.
Sources:- - eTurboNews – original text on the Seychellois “friend of all” strategy and neutral diplomacy (link)
- - State House Seychelles – statement on President Patrick Herminie’s interview for RT and the foreign-policy message “friends to all, enemies to none” (link)
- - State House Seychelles – official statement on the meeting between President Patrick Herminie and Vladimir Putin in Moscow on 22 April 2026 (link)
- - U.S. Department of State – overview of relations between the United States of America and Seychelles, including maritime security and environmental protection (link)
- - Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Seychelles – statement on talks between Seychelles and China on deepening the bilateral partnership in March 2025 (link)
- - National Bureau of Statistics Seychelles – official description of tourism statistics and the role of tourism in the Seychellois economy (link)
- - Ministry of Agriculture, Climate Change and Environment of Seychelles – data on the blue economy, marine protected areas and blue bonds (link)
- - Associated Press – report on Patrick Herminie’s victory in the 2025 presidential elections (link)
- - World Bank – material on Seychelles’ first sovereign blue bond and the importance of the ocean for the economy (link)
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