New Delhi: Commenting on Sri Lanka’s cabinet decision to develop West Container Terminal at Colombo port at India and Japan, the Ministry of External Affairs on Friday said that India’s High Commissioner in Colombo has already conveyed to the Government of Sri Lanka that the media release in so far as the reference to approval of High Commission was concerned, is factually incorrect.
“Our High Commission in Colombo has conveyed to Sri Lanka government that their media release in so far as the reference to approval of High Commission was concerned, is factually incorrect," said Anurag Srivastava, MEA spokesperson.
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“We understand that the government of Sri Lanka has engaged directly with investors on this project,” he added.
His comment comes after the Sri Lankan government claimed that the Indian high commission had given a green signal to the Adani port proposal of Sri Lanka.
The Sri Lankan government on Tuesday confirmed that it will develop the West Container Terminal (WCT) at the Colombo port with India and Japan. This move by the island nation can be viewed as one of the strategies to keep away China's regional influence and strengthened the traditional balance with India and for that matter Japan.
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The government last month scrapped the partially built Eastern Container Terminal (ECT) port deal with India and Japan, located next to a $500-million Chinese-run container jetty within the capital Colombo's rambling port, amid protests by port unions and resistance to foreign involvement in Sri Lankan projects. Such a move by Sri Lanka came as a setback to India and its plans to develop strategic infrastructure projects in other nations shortly.
According to reports, Sri Lankan government Spokesperson Keheliya Rambukwella had said that in Colombo that the discussions to develop WCT will be only with India and Japan.
He said that the Sri Lankan cabinet on Monday decided to allow India and Japan to have an 85 per cent stake in the West Container Terminal -- the same terms China was granted when building the CICT(Colombo International Container Terminal).
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Earlier, reacting to Sri Lanka’s decision to scrap the ECT port deal with India, the spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs had said, “The governments of India, Sri Lanka, and Japan had signed a memorandum of cooperation in May 2019 to develop and operate the East Container Terminal of Colombo port under a trilateral framework.
We sincerely believe that the development of infrastructure in Sri Lanka in areas such as sports and energy, with foreign investment from India and Japan, will be a mutually beneficial proposition”.
"Our High Commissioner in Colombo is in discussion with the Government of Sri Lanka including on the importance of adhering to international commitments”, the spokesperson had stated.
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