New Delhi: As Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe arrived in New Delhi on Thursday amid his country reeling under economic crisis, India’s former ambassador G Parthasarathy said that the island nation finally had a 'bargaining chip' in India and Japan to tackle China.
In an interview with ETV Bharat, Parthasarathy, who has served in several key positions in his career including Spokesman Ministry of External Affairs and Spokesman in the Prime Minister’s Office with Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi (1985-90), also spoke about India-Pakistan relations and why the country would never ask India to help it come out the economic crisis even if the latter was ready to provide any.
Asked how Pakistan would react if India stepped in to help Islamabad get out of the crisis as it did for Sri Lanka, the former diplomat told ETV Bharat that he has lived there (in Pakistan) for six years and the country's establishment believes that they would rather "die than ask India for assistance".
"The elite especially the military would feel that they are demeaning their very existence if they turn to India for help," he said. Parthasarathy was the Indian High Commissioner in Pakistan in 1998 and right through the 1999 Kargil war.
"I have a lot of friends there. Their establishment believes that they would rather die than ask India for assistance. That is the depth of the feeling. They may cool off on terrorism for a number of reasons but it not going to be the same as Sri Lanka...Pakistan is so utterly broke. The establishment there is gazing at the International Monetary Fund, the Chinese, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Strangely, China has not chipped in with a lot of cash which again proves that it wants a presence. The other thing one has to consider is the military there. The bulk of the arms are of Chinese origin and even their nuclear weapons, their missiles are of Chinese design. Pakistan is a convenient tool for China to keep India occupied," Parthasarathy said.
On Sri Lankan President's India visit, the former IFS officer said it was "significant" given that the country was expected to heed India's advice more seriously than ever. "Ranil Wickremesinghe will discuss the economy, and certainly India has opened a line of credit as well. President Ranil is an old politician whom we have dealt with for years, very mature and balanced and his visit here is how to carry the process forward," Parthasarathy said. The former ambassador said that as long as Wickremesinghe is there, "there will be a steady movement forward".
"Sri Lanka would be very careful pertaining to Chinese presence on anything which affects India. I think Sri Lanka has learned a lesson," he noted. In 1983-84, Parthasarathy tried to resolve the Sinhalese-Tamil conflict in Sri Lanka when Indira Gandhi appointed him as her personal envoy to the island nation.
Also read: Sri Lanka not averse to using Indian rupee as common currency: President Wickremesinghe
"On the geopolitical side, India works closely with Japan. So it’s not the Chinese resources competing against India, it is against India and Japan, which is formidable in Sri Lanka, and that has helped. Sri Lanka now has the position to tell the Chinese that they cannot push them around as they have got the 'bargaining chip' which is India and Japan and of course the Americans. It is a fully-fledged diplomatic move with India as its centre. It is India who is doing the running, spreading the word," the former ambassador said.
In recent times, he said, Sri Lanka was "moving more and more into the arms of the Chinese and that caused us concern especially when the Chinese had control of ports like Colombo and Hambantota". "The efforts really picked up when EAM S Jaishankar was in Sri Lanka. We managed to turn the tables when Sri Lanka’s economy was collapsing and China did nothing, all they wanted was the ports, offering them high-interest loans and taking them into what we called a 'debt trap'. At that time, when the financial crisis broke, they came to India, and PM Modi reacted very positively because the economy was collapsing and democracy was falling apart with riots," he said.
India stepped in to assist them with about $4 billion to enable them to balance payments, he said, adding that India lobbied for Sri Lanka very hard in Washington, particularly with the IMF and World Bank, and stabilized the position for them. "Now the Chinese remained the factor but interestingly, Hambantota port was totally handed over to the Chinese and it is mortgaged to China. The fact is India did not want that to be repeated and we have moved in a way, which gave us a presence there," Parthasarathy explained.
At the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Wickremesinghe is on an official visit from 20-21 July. This will be his first visit to India since assuming the current responsibilities. During his visit, Wickremesinghe will meet President Droupadi Murmu and hold discussions with the Prime Minister and other Indian dignitaries on a range of issues of mutual interest.
It is important to note that Sri Lanka is an important partner in India’s Neighbourhood First Policy and Vision SAGAR. The visit will reinforce the longstanding friendship between the two countries and explore avenues for enhanced connectivity and mutually beneficial cooperation across sectors. Parthasarathy observed that people in Sri Lanka were tired and there was disenchantment with China and therefore, India has capitalised on it.
”Apart from getting Sri Lanka assistance from IMF, we have also moved ahead with offering projects and that should be followed up in the months to come. Now Sri Lanka is more sensitive when we express concerns about their handing over parts of the island to the Chinese, more so if they are close to India’s shores”, said the former diplomat.
Also read: India seeking 'transformation in ties' with Sri Lanka, says foreign secretary Kwatra
