• Insights from visiting French senators on strategy, trade, and trust
• Renewables, cybersecurity, maritime security, digital resilience emerge as key pillars

With the turbulent nature of the global order we face today, nations are increasingly looking to diversify their partnerships and relationships with regional and extra-regional countries. 

Sri Lanka and France have a long history of sound bipartisan relations, which both nations have built on. During a recent high-profile visit to Colombo by a delegation of French Senators, Sri Lankan officials, politicians, and industry got the opportunity to exchange views and discuss collaboration for the future. 

The delegation, led by Senator (Aube region) Vanina Paoli-Gagin, who is President of the France-Sri Lanka Parliamentary Friendship Group of the French Senate, also included Senator (Seine-Maritime, Normandy) Didier Marie, who is a Member of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee, and Committee for European Affairs Vice President, Senator (Bas-Rhin region) Laurence Muller-Bronn, who is the Vice President in charge of Tourism within the European Collectivity of Alsace. 

The visiting delegation met Sri Lanka’s President, Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, Speaker, and other State officials and visited multiple French-led projects and institutions, including the Regional Centre for Maritime Studies (RCMS) at the Kotelawala Defence University (KDU).

The Sunday Morning caught up with the visiting delegation for an interview on where bilateral relations stand between the two nations and what the future may hold.

Following are excerpts:

Was this your first visit to Sri Lanka? And what is your first impression of the island and its governance?

Paoli-Gagin: Yes, it is our first visit to Sri Lanka. I can say it is a positive impression. We felt good vibrations from this visit. We observed the tremendous resilience of the Sri Lankan people. It is a vibrant democracy with very young political leaders in Parliament and in the Executive branch as well. The leadership seems to be concerned about human issues, with an understanding that if you don’t care about human issues, about the people and their issues, it leads to systemic problems, and that once a problem becomes systemic it’s difficult and costly to address. We feel that there is a huge amount of energy and optimism.

As the Head of the France-Sri Lanka Parliamentary Friendship Group, what is your assessment of the bilateral relationship?

Paoli-Gagin: It is an ongoing and strengthening bilateral relationship, because our Presidents met in India during the AI Impact Summit a few months ago. I think your President may visit France soon. We, the France-Sri Lanka Friendship Association, hosted your Prime Minister when she visited Paris. Deputy Minister of Mass Media Kaushalya Ariyarathne also visited. So I think the relationship is evolving. 

On digitalisation and the changes with the introduction of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies, I think Sri Lanka and France share the same vision. We want our countries to seize the momentum with AI technology and France is ahead in this area. But we have to be very conscious of the negative effects of such technologies. I think Sri Lanka has a similar thought pattern to that in India, where it is firstly ‘AI for the people’; it is not ‘people for AI’. In this perspective, we are aligned. All technology must remain with the human in the loop – human-centric.

During your visit, you met Government officials and members of industry and the private sector. What are your key takeaways? Are there any projects or investment opportunities for French industries, in academic areas, or for collaboration?

Paoli-Gagin: Yes, we inaugurated the water purification plant built with French expertise at Ambatale, which brings water to half of Colombo, if I am not mistaken. That is a proof of concept – yes, you can have projects in Sri Lanka, and they can succeed in the right way, and that we can deliver, and we can be respected on both sides, which is very important for a good relationship. It was good that the French development agency could help with this project. Taking care of infrastructure is a big challenge and that was echoed by all the politicians and officials. 

The second one, with the private sector – a collaboration with a French company, with support from the French Development Agency. The third example was our visit to the Colombo Dockyard, which is now contracted to build two vessels for the French company Orange Marine. For me, it was special as two years ago I was in the French port city of Toulon, where I visited the Sophie Germain [the first cable laying ship built by Colombo Dockyard for Orange Marine in 2023], and at the dockyard we met the same Commander of that ship overseeing the project. 

He told us how impressed he was with the build quality and that he had respect for Sri Lankan engineers and technicians who had built the Sophie Germain. That ship is now a model for this type of ship and Sri Lanka is now building two more. I think that is a good indication, as shipbuilding is a complex industry, and if you can prove you’re good at it, then it adds value for the Sri Lankan industry and recognition.

In terms of science and academia, what areas do you think Sri Lanka should focus on in their engagement with France for collaboration to upskill the Sri Lankan workforce?

Paoli-Gagin: For me, the priority area is the energy sector – Renewable Energy (RE). Because you are an island, you import most of your energy, but as an island, you have a lot of scope for wind/solar and hydro energy. 

In my constituency, we are one of the most developed areas for bio-energy development, which can be developed from biowaste. RE is coupled with a storage system, like batteries. Provided that your national grid is in good condition, Sri Lanka can learn from our experience and not make some of the mistakes we have made.  

We also have a lot of experience in cybersecurity and data centres with green energy and digital resilience. Currently, France has decided to have its own digital platforms; we are moving away from a system controlled by big conglomerates to ensure our digital sovereignty and resilience. We have good cybersecurity expertise which we can share. We can also improve our cooperation between our academia and scientific communities.

Your delegation visited the RCMS at the KDU this week. How do you gauge its progress?

Paoli-Gagin: Yes, we did visit the centre and it is impressive. It is still a work in progress, but they have done a lot within a year and a half. The European Union (EU) takes freedom of navigation, safety, and security at sea and ocean ecosystems seriously. Ocean preservation and controlling pollution are vital for the planet. So this centre, which is in Sri Lanka, a nation which is at the heart of the Indian Ocean, is playing an important role in the region.

Sri Lanka, as an island nation, has always upheld international maritime law and the right to freedom of navigation. France has also been a proponent of international law. When considering the current situation in the Strait of Hormuz, with blockades and counter-blockades, what are Frances’s concerns?

Marie: France is very committed to respecting international law. International law has been put in danger by the actions of the United States and France considers this action illegal. Even more, as negotiations were ongoing about nuclear-related issues and despite the ongoing negotiations, the US was unable to demonstrate that Iran had made any progress in its willingness to achieve a nuclear weapon. It also goes against the interests of the Iranian people, as even though the attacks are supposed to be targeted against the regime and the military, there has been collateral damage. France has been asking for a ceasefire and going back to the negotiation table to resolve issues.

France has advocated for a ceasefire in the Strait of Hormuz and the movement of traffic – in that context, to send an international force, led by the United Nations, to ensure freedom of navigation. The French President has gathered several countries which are keen to help guarantee the freedom of navigation, but with only defensive objectives. France has also helped nations with which we have security agreements in their defence, like the UAE and Qatar, to protect themselves. French aircraft and ships have been helping them to defend against drone and missile attacks from Iran.

France calls for the respect of international law and we want the conflict to be resolved at the UN Security Council level.

France was the first European nation to adopt an Indo-Pacific strategy. Can you explain what France wants to accomplish through it and what role you think it plays in bilateral relations with Sri Lanka?

Marie: France is an Indo-Pacific power. We have territories in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific. The first dimension of our Indo-Pacific strategy is the protection of our territories and interests. These territories have large maritime domains, which need protection in terms of security and resource management. We have also noticed that international tensions and conflicts are brought to these islands, so we want international law enforced in those territories and maritime domains. Another objective is to protect the environment from pollution and excessive fishing.

We have recently commenced a strategic partnership with India. We are also keen to strengthen our partnership with Sri Lanka, because in the south of your country lies a key shipping lane – a zone of transit for shipping. Our Navy, Marine Nationale, needs trusted harbours in which it can call at and replenish. This is the case with India at present; maybe we could find new partnerships in the future.

Global stability and growth remain upheld by international law and multilateralism. Given the disruptions the current US administration has brought to the world order, is France looking to broaden its trade and bilateral ties beyond the EU? And does Sri Lanka stand to benefit from such an expansion?

Marie: At the moment, no one can fully trust the US – not even if the US administration is not the same in the future. We hope it won’t be the same in the future. We still have to maintain good relations with the US. We need to diversify our partnerships – both the EU and France. That is the reason why at the EU level we have been entering into more and more trade deals – with India and Australia, and one is being negotiated with Indonesia. Sri Lanka can also benefit from trade preferences. 

We believe that the UN General Assembly (UNGA), where every country has one vote, is the right place to deal with international issues and Sri Lanka has its voice and vote in the forum. Sri Lanka has had a tradition of non-alignment and I think this should be maintained with the help of other countries.

In your discussions, did the Sri Lankan Government discuss the repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), which the EU has set as a condition for the extension of the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) trade concession programme?

Muller-Bronn: This was discussed on several occasions, with the Speaker of Parliament and the Minister of Foreign Affairs. All of them said that they were committed to repealing the PTA. Anyway, it is not only for benefiting from the GSP+ programme, but also to improve human rights and democracy.

The senators expressed that the process needs to move forward quickly because GSP+ preferences will come to an end next year and it is an important part of the EU’s programme. It is not a specific condition that is imposed only on Sri Lanka, but also on all who enjoy the preferences.

There is rising concern in Europe, particularly amongst Right-wing political movements, about immigration and the alleged gap in assimilation into the broader community. There is a small but vibrant Sri Lankan community in France. Have they integrated well with the broader French community?

Muller-Bronn and Marie: The Sri Lankan community in France is mainly centred around Paris. The general perception is that it is not a community which appears in the media as problematic in any way, so the integration is good. This applies both to student communities and those who have found employment. There is a perception that the integration of women in the community is more successful, so it is a positive impression of the community. 

What are your thoughts on the potential in Sri Lanka for the tourism industry?

Muller-Bronn: All the officials we met underlined the fact that they want to develop Sri Lanka’s tourism and the issue was discussed widely. In my opinion, before Sri Lanka moves to promotion, it needs to identify what kind of tourism it wants to be identified with.

Your country, which I just discovered, has very strong tourist assets – some of which I must say I don’t think other countries in the region have – so you can and need to build a mystique about Sri Lanka, something that will be a long-standing attraction. It is perhaps better to be a bit ‘old school’ with the mystique than to be too modern with the attraction. 

Perhaps Sri Lanka should look for tourism which will see tourists who want to spend more time and money in the country, rather than make a quick dash from one hotspot to the next. Such quick turnaround package tourism brings its own set of challenges and at times erodes the mystique of islands.

Sri Lanka can do with retaining its old-school charms and attract tourists with nostalgic values with its locations and culture, which will draw tourists who will frequent the island to relive their memories. Sometimes developing too fast creates its own challenges for the sector. Big developments/buildings and facilities may disrupt the charm of the island. You can build on your rich history and promote that as well – both the indigenous heritage and the colonial one.