New Delhi:As the Island nation suffers from a financial crisis, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has asked the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to restructure the debt repayments as a solution to the economic crisis that has arisen out of the Covid 19 pandemic. Gotabaya requested this during a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi who was paying an official visit to Sri Lanka in Colombo.
Gotabaya asked Wang Yi to convey his cordial greetings and best wishes to President Xi Jinping. Gotabaya thanked China for its timely assistance when Sri Lanka faces difficulties and expressed his gratitude to China for its strong support for Sri Lanka's fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and its effective control of the pandemic.
Commenting on Sri Lanka-China bonhomie, Professor Harsh V Pant, Director, Research, ORF, said, "Sri Lanka's economic situation is not good and some part of the problem is the heavy reliance on Chinese money and the debt that Sri Lanka has accumulated over the years and of course along with the financial mismanagement by the political elite in the country.
"As we have seen in the past also because of the one-sided deals that Sri Lanka has signed with China, it has had to face problems. For instance, Hambantota port had to be leased to China for 99 years, despite, Sri Lankan authorities not wanting to do it but they had no options in the end because of the terms and conditions," he added.
Therefore, the easy money that has been flowing from China into Sri Lanka has had a negative impact, he underlined.
Colombo has also reached out to New Delhi because they sense that India has some potential to bail them out of the present crisis. Like most countries in India's neighborhood, Sri Lanka also uses India and China to its advantage as and when the situation demands, Professor Pant reiterated.
He also pointed out that the Rajapaksa government has tried to balance India and China so far as their economic ties are concerned
Pant underlined that the island nation has completely understood that relying on any one country can be counterproductive for them. As of now, there is a reassessment about the reliance on China.
According to reports, in the last decade, China has lent Sri Lanka over $5bn (£3.7bn) for projects including roads, an airport, and ports.
Colombo has also sought 1.5 billion dollars from India. Wang Yi's visit to Sri Lanka comes days after India-Sri Lanka signed the Trincomalee Oil tank farms.
Meanwhile, Gotabaya lauded the important contributions made by Chinese enterprises to Sri Lanka's economic revitalization and infrastructure construction.
He said that Sri Lanka is willing to work with China to hold a series of events marking the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Sri Lanka and China and the 70th anniversary of the signing of the Rubber-Rice Pact and strengthen cooperation with China in the fields of economy, trade, finance, tourism and infrastructure, to bring more benefits to the two peoples.
According to the Srilankan Foreign ministry, Wang Yi first conveyed President Xi Jinping's cordial greetings. Wang Yi said this year is an important year for both China and Sri Lanka to commemorate. The most important historical experience of the long-standing friendly exchanges between the two countries is that both sides have always adhered to the principle of mutual respect, mutual understanding, mutual trust, and mutual support.
70 years ago, China and Sri Lanka, two newly born countries, overcame difficulties and obstacles and signed the Rubber-Rice Pact, opening the door for friendly exchanges, demonstrating our national spirit in the fight against hegemony and power politics, and breaking the Cold War isolation imposed by the West based on ideology.
The spirit of the pact characterized by independence, self-reliance, unity, and mutual support is deeply rooted in the hearts of the two peoples and reflected in the entire process of the development of bilateral relations. It is still of great practical significance and worth our further inheritance and promotion.
Wang Yi further said China has been playing a constructive role in the global fight against the pandemic. "One out of every two doses of vaccines injected around the world is the Chinese vaccine. China will continue to offer vaccines and medical supplies to Sri Lanka according to its needs and is willing to work together with Sri Lanka to explore cooperation on specific medicines for COVID-19.
The two sides should make good use of the two engines, Colombo Port City and Hambantota Port flagship projects, tap the opportunities of the enforcement of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and China's vast market, and discuss the restart of talks on a free trade agreement between China and Sri Lanka to send more positive signals to the world and contribute to Sri Lanka's economic recovery and development. China encourages competent Chinese enterprises to invest and develop in Sri Lanka", he added.
Before the meeting, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa met with Wang Yi and jointly attended the signing ceremony of the bilateral cooperation document.
After the meeting, Gotabaya, Mahinda, and Wang Yi attended the launching ceremony of the celebrations marking the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Sri Lanka and the 70th anniversary of the signing of the Rubber-Rice Pact.
On the same day, Wang Yi also met with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris.
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