• RW clarifies to Indian media that survey ship moratorium applies to all

President Ranil Wickremesinghe, addressing concerns about China’s increased presence in the Indian Ocean region, reiterated last week that Sri Lanka would not allow anything that would jeopardise India’s security.

Wickremesinghe reiterated the remarks, during an interview with Indian broadcast news channel WION, where he added: “We have kept Indian security in mind, and we will not allow anything to happen that will be harmful to Indian security. These are all hydrographic vessels” referring to the controversial visits by Chinese Scientific Research vessels which have called on Sri Lanka several times, causing concern in both New Delhi and Washington D.C over the last two years.

When asked about the Sri Lankan Government’s decision to not allow the visits of Chinese vessels, Wickremesinghe explained that the administration decided to say no to ships from any country when it comes to hydrographical matters, as Sri Lanka is focusing on building its own hydrographical capacity.

“But if they are Navy ships that are coming in for visits, yes we will allow it,” the President told WION’s diplomatic correspondent Sidhant Sibal in Perth.

In response to a question on China’s purported attempts to create a wedge between India and Sri Lanka, Wickremesinghe said: “Chinese ships have been coming to Sri Lanka over a period of time. And China has never tried to create a rift between India and Sri Lanka; they always say that we have to get along with India. There has never been an issue as far as we are concerned. The number of ships that have been coming has not increased, nor have they decreased. But we are also encouraging ships from other countries to come in, which are not been there earlier. Japan, India, Pakistan, and the US – their ships have been coming. We have asked many of the other European countries to come to Sri Lanka.”

With regard to debt restructuring, Wickremesinghe expressed hopes about concluding the negotiations by June 2024. He said after reaching formal agreements with the Official Creditor Committee (OCC), Sri Lanka will have to come to formal agreements with all other creditor nations as well as other financial organisations. Speaking of the economic support given by India amid Sri Lanka’s economic crisis, Wickremesinghe said that without India’s support, Sri Lanka could not have survived, and this is why the country is also looking at closer relations between the two countries. “Indo-Lanka relationships are improving, and today we are looking at close economic ties and improving connectivity between the two countries,” he said.

In response to the question as to what Sri Lanka expects from India in terms of former’s development goals, the President said that while India has helped Sri Lanka financially, Sri Lanka would like to see Indian investments in Sri Lanka. The President pointed out the decision to establish an IIT Madras campus in Sri Lanka as a development in this regard.

The long drawn-out fishermen’s issue between the two countries was also a matter that was discussed during the interview. In this regard, the President said that it is a huge issue to Sri Lankan fishermen and that discussions regarding the same are expected to conclude sometime this year.

With regard to the full implementation of the 13th Amendment: the President added: “We will hold the Provincial Council election next year. As I announced in my speech when I opened Parliament, we want to give each province its own economy so that like in India, economies will compete with each other, which will be of benefit. Those provinces should handle their economic and social development within the national policy framework. In this respect, we said we are prepared to give the concurrent powers – most of it, or whatever is required or whatever they want for the Provincial Councils.”

In addition, the use of Indian Rupees in Sri Lanka, Indian tourists in Sri Lanka’s tourism, and the India-Sri Lanka free trade agreements were also discussed, the President revealed during the interview.