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President clinches assurances from China; visit of research ship remains unresolved
View(s):By Our Diplomatic Editor
President Ranil Wickremesinghe concluded a three-day working visit this week to China where he clinched assurances of support for Sri Lanka, addressing its current economic difficulties and alleviating its debt burden.
China, one of Sri Lanka’s largest creditors, announced last month prior to the Sri Lankan Presidential visit that its official creditor, the Export-Import Bank of China (EXIM), has reached ‘preliminary’ agreement with Sri Lanka on the debt treatment. However, at the end of the Wickremesinghe visit, the joint statement stated that China would “continue to support its financial institutions in conducting friendly consultation with Sri Lanka to reach early agreement on treatment of debt related to China”.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping. Below: The President taking part in high-level discussions in Beijing
The announcement by Beijing of striking a ‘preliminary’ agreement with Sri Lankan on debt restructuring took the rest of the creditors, especially India and the West by surprise and raised questions with Colombo if the Sri Lankan government had reneged on an understanding that it would not enter into separate bilateral agreements on debt restructuring and that all creditors will be treated equally.
The joint statement showed that the ‘preliminary’ agreement was just that, and no finality has been reached. The joint statement went on to state that the “Chinese side is willing to work with relevant countries and international financial institutions to keep playing a positive role in helping Sri Lanka address its current difficulties, alleviate debt burden and realise sustainable development”. That reference indicated China was willing to negotiate with the Paris Club which consisted of the rest of Sri Lanka’s creditors.
In the lengthy 19-point joint statement drafted by the host country issued following official talks between President Wickremesinghe and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday, Sri Lanka welcomed Chinese enterprises playing a “positive role” in its economic development and more investment from Chinese enterprises. In references to the Colombo Port City and the Hambantota Port, they were referred to as “signature projects” of the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) where Sri Lanka welcomes “further investment” from Chinese enterprises.
A significant ongoing issue absent from the joint statement, however, was that no reference was made to the controversial visit of a Chinese research vessel requesting permission to dock in a Sri Lankan port during a stay in Sri Lankan territorial waters amidst strong opposition to such a visit from India and the United States.
The matter had been raised unofficially repeatedly with President Wickremesinghe’s National Security Adviser Sagala Ratnayake and members of the Sri Lankan delegation by the Chinese Foreign Ministry officials. The Chinese side was demanding approval for the vessel to enter Sri Lanka waters next week, while Sri Lanka was insisting that a date after November 25 could be ‘considered’. As a compromise, the Sri Lankan side had offered the vessel to enter Sri Lankan waters for a day, dock, refuel and leave, but the Chinese side refused the compromise.
Meanwhile, the University of Ruhuna has written to the Government saying its officials have an agreement to work jointly with the Chinese research vessel, and to allow the ship to enter Sri Lanka immediately. India and the US, among others, were pressurising Sri Lanka not to allow the vessel to enter Sri Lankan waters claiming it to be a ‘spy ship’.
Sri Lanka reiterated its long standing support for its ‘One China’ policy recognising that Taiwan was an “inalienable part” of China and would oppose any form of ‘Taiwan independence’. There was no reference to Tibet in the joint statement.
It was noteworthy that China also expressed support for the multilateral trading system, opposition to protectionism and readiness to make economic globalisation more open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial. Sri Lanka agreed to actively participate in the Chinese initiatives for, inter-alia, global and regional peace and security.
Among other matters in the joint statement, Sri Lanka has reiterated it will continue to actively participate in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of China. It was the 10th anniversary of the BRI that was being celebrated in Beijing, attended by President Wickremesinghe and 22 other Heads of State.
The two sides agreed to sign several Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) related to BRI cooperation between the two countries. These include an MoU on Jointly Accelerating the Formulation of the Cooperation Plan on the BRI, an MoU on Cooperation on Green and Low-Carbon Development and an Implementation Agreement of ChinaAid Subsidised Housing Project for Low Income Category in Colombo.
In the joint statement, the two sides expressed satisfaction over the progress made in bilateral cooperation in economy and trade, and agreed to conclude “a comprehensive free trade agreement as quickly as possible to strengthen two-way trade and economic cooperation.”
The two sides also agreed to strengthen ties in a range of other areas, including exchanges and cooperation between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The statement said the Chinese side is ready “to carry out technological exchanges and training cooperation in areas including bio-technologies for tropical crops, plant breeding, aquaculture, agricultural processing, market development and agriculture modernisation, thus helping Sri Lanka enhance its comprehensive agricultural production capacity.”
The two sides agreed to continue to strengthen cooperation in the areas of science and education, and encourage educational institutions to carry out cooperative research and joint cultivation.
They also agreed to continue to deepen people-to-people exchanges and cooperation between sister cities, and to carry out closer cooperation in climate change adaptation and sustainable development, emphasising that joint implementation of green measures are effective ways to mitigate climate change.
(Please see ST 2 section today for an article in the Washington Post on China’s domination of the deep sea and its wealth of rare minerals). ax
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