Category: News

“Sri Lanka and China are ushering in a new chapter in bilateral relations,” Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has said in an interview with Xinhua.

At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Dissanayake was on a state visit to China from Tuesday to Friday, his first trip to China since taking office in September as Sri Lankan president.

“I first visited Beijing in 2004. Returning after 20 years, I see a tremendous transformation,” Dissanayake said.

Over the past 68 years since establishing diplomatic ties, China and Sri Lanka have deepened their strategic cooperative partnership through sincere mutual assistance and lasting friendship.

Following their talks on Wednesday, the two heads of state jointly witnessed the signing of several cooperation documents in such areas as Belt and Road cooperation, agricultural products, social welfare, and the press, radio and television.

Dissanayake said that Sri Lanka is currently facing several challenges, including poverty reduction, technological advancement and infrastructure development, and China can play a significant role in supporting Sri Lanka in overcoming these challenges.

“I observed that the Chinese government is people-centered and attentive to public needs. Similarly, Sri Lanka’s new government is also dedicated to serving its people,” said the 56-year-old president.

Dissanayake applauded China’s poverty alleviation achievements. “China’s poverty reduction experience is a global model and has been praised by the United Nations. Sri Lanka has much to learn from China’s experience,” he said, highlighting his plan of field trips to rural areas in China to learn firsthand how local farmers have overcome poverty.

Dissanayake was also impressed by his visit to the Museum of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which shows how China, led by the CPC, has overcome challenges and achieved its current success. “The exhibition holds great significance not only for the Chinese people, but also for us as it offers new perspectives on development,” he said.

Over the years, Sri Lanka and China have made steady progress in high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.

Chinese enterprises have constructed ports, highways, railways, hospitals, water conservancies and power facilities in Sri Lanka, significantly improving its infrastructure and investment environment while boosting local employment.

China is a major trade partner for Sri Lanka, a leading source of imports and foreign investment, and a key provider of development assistance.

The Colombo Port City and Hambantota Port are landmark projects of the Belt and Road cooperation between the two sides. “These two projects will undoubtedly bring long-term economic benefits to Sri Lanka,” Dissanayake said.

Industrial parks would be developed around Hambantota Port, and Colombo Port City would attract more investment, greatly improving the living standards of the Sri Lankan people, he said.

Debunking Western media’s disinformation that China is creating a “debt trap” and militarizing Sri Lankan ports, Dissanayake said, “Global South countries need development, which cannot be achieved without external investment and loans. We cannot view such assistance as a ‘debt trap’.”

Looking ahead, Dissanayake expressed hope of attracting more Chinese enterprises to invest in Sri Lanka and more Chinese tourists. Currently, China is Sri Lanka’s fourth-largest source of tourists.

To further boost tourism, Sri Lanka has launched tourism promotion campaigns and streamlined visa application processes, and it is planning more direct flights to attract Chinese tourists.

“Sri Lanka and China are both nations rich in cultural heritage with a long history of people-to-people exchanges. I believe Chinese tourists will have a wonderful time in Sri Lanka,” said the president.

Source: Xinhua

High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka Santosh Jha held talks with Namal Rajapaksa, the national organizer of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna.

The High Commission in an X post said that the duo exchanged views on the multi-faceted India-Sri Lanka issues, ranging from ongoing development projects, investments, economic revival of Sri Lanka and other areas of mutual interest.

In a post on Facebook, Namal Rajapaksa said that he discussed the continued maintenance of the strong relationship that has existed between our two countries for many years.

The Samagi Jana Balawega (SJB) was established in 2020 under the leadership of Sajith Premadasa, separated from the United National Party (UNP), which was known as the largest single political party in Sri Lanka.

As a result of the long-standing conflicts over the leadership of the UNP, a majority of its members split from the party and formed the SJB.

Several other parties that had joined hands with the UNP also formed an alliance with the SJB in this separation.

After Sajith Premadasa contested the presidential election for the first time in 2019 and was defeated, he left the UNP with a large group and formed the SJB, and the party was elected as the main opposition in parliament in the 2020 general election.

Although the SJB served as the main opposition, it failed to gain power in the presidential and general elections held during the economic crisis and after the struggle.

In the 2024 general election, proposals were made by both parties that the UNP and the SJB should contest the election together.

Those talks failed and both parties contested the election separately.

‘Initially, Sajith was against it’

Both parties have proposed that they should contest separately and reunite after the heavy defeats suffered by both parties.

“Initially, Sajith was against it. But all of them have said that they should unite. Accordingly, Sajith has agreed,” said former minister Rajitha Senaratne, who is intervening on behalf of the alliance on the UNP camp.

He noted that opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, who opposed the UNP-SJB alliance, is currently being pressured to rejoin.

All the opposition parties with a common emblem

Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa has proposed to contest the upcoming elections under the telephone symbol and former president Ranil Wickremesinghe under the elephant symbol.

“Without both of these, our side has said that they should unite all parts of the opposition with one common logo and agree to compete as one group. They have said that they will exert pressure on their side to do the same.”

Common opposition won cooperative votes

Former minister Rajitha Senaratne also mentioned that in the cooperative elections where the opposition parties came together and competed, they were able to defeat the ruling party and gain power.

“In Beruwala, we all contested as one team, and in almost every place, the JVP had only 30%. The rest went to the Joint Opposition. Similarly, if we unite in Biyagama and Homagama, we will win everywhere.”

Discussions to begin this week

General Secretary of SJB, MP Ranjith Madduma Bandara, had the following remarks when inquired about a potential UNP-SJB alliance.

“We will begin discussions this week,” he said, adding that he is not in a position to comment further until the discussions commence.

‘Ranil is the only one left to save the country’

The media had cited a request from the SJB as the main reason for the collapse of talks between the UNP and the SJB to contest the last parliamentary election.

The reports stated that former president Ranil Wickremesinghe was presented with a major condition for resigning from the UNP leadership.

When asked whether the same condition was valid for this time’s talks, SJB general secretary Ranjith Madduma Bandara said that they have not put forward such a condition.

“Today, the entire country is saying that Ranil is the only one left to save the country. What we have to choose at this time are not popular leaders. We need a leader who can save the country,” former MP Rajitha Senaratne said.

Discussions are scheduled to take place regarding the formation of an alliance between the UNP and other opposition parties, including the SJB, to contest the upcoming local government elections.

(With inputs from BBC Sinhala)

Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Power and Energy and China’s Sinopec Corporation have signed an agreement to build an oil refinery in Hambantota with an investment of USD 3.7 billion.

The agreement was signed during President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s current state visit to China, marking the highest foreign investment secured by the government, the President’s Media Division (PMD) said.

The proposed oil refinery has a capacity of 200,000 barrels of oil, of which a significant amount is planned to be exported.

This massive investment received by Sri Lanka from China will contribute to the economic growth of the country as well as strengthening the livelihoods of the low-income people in the Hambantota area, and the entire Sri Lankan people very soon, the PMD said in a statement.

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism Vijitha Herath, Minister of Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation Bimal Ratnayake, Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Qi Zhenhong, and Sri Lankan Ambassador to China Majintha Jayasinghe also participated in this event.

Milinda Moragoda, Founder of the Pathfinder Foundation, visited Delhi recently (14-15 January), where he met with several key government decision-makers and heads of think tanks. These interactions included meetings with Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, National Security Advisor Shri Ajit Doval, and Foreign Secretary Shri Vikram Misri.

The Pathfinder Foundation maintains an ongoing dialogue with the Indian government, think tanks, civil society organizations, and the private sector. In 2015, the foundation established the Center for Indo-Lanka Initiatives, which is dedicated to strengthening and promoting bilateral relations. Pathfinder has built a strong network of partnerships in India and has facilitated several track 1.5 and 2.0 exchanges between the two countries. It has also authored several groundbreaking studies and analyses. Most recently, Pathfinder has focused on promoting trilateral and quadrilateral initiatives that bring together Sri Lanka, India, and third countries to jointly work toward Sri Lanka’s development.

The foundation also runs a Sinhala publishing program, which publishes both translations and original works of books that provide deeper insights into various aspects of the Indo-Lanka relationship.

Photos: Milinda Moragoda had discussions with (left to right) Nirmala Sitharaman, Finance Minister; Ajit Doval, National Security Advisor; and Vikram Misri, Foreign Secretary.

The United States of America has praised the new government of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake for its dedication to economic reforms and anti-corruption measures.

US Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Julie Chung, said that as the United States prepares to inaugurate President Trump there will be a transition of the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka later this year,

“We welcome the Sri Lankan government’s commitment to staying on track with the IMF program and finalization of its international sovereign bond restructuring, to its commitment to combatting corruption and working with partners like AmCham to create a transparent, rules-based investment climate that will drive growth. ,” said Ambassador Chung highlighting the importance of Sri Lanka’s adherence to the IMF program and the finalization of its international sovereign bond restructuring.

She noted that while stability is a crucial first step, the more challenging task lies in fostering growth, productivity, and sustainable economic practices.

The launch of the “Clean Sri Lanka” initiative, which aims to reset the country’s political and economic culture, was also commended.

Ambassador Chung expressed optimism about the concrete steps that will be taken to fulfill this pledge of reforms, including the potential restructuring of inefficient state-owned enterprises, honoring contracts, and ensuring a level playing field for foreign companies.

“With the launch of the government’s “Clean Sri Lanka” that indicates not just a clean environment but a resetting of political and economic culture, we look forward to seeing what concrete steps are made and how we can all contribute to this pledge of reforms, whether it’s on anti corruption or beyond. Will inefficient state-owned enterprises be reformed? Will contracts be honored? Will foreign companies have a level playing field and not face protectionist policies? Where will AI take us in business?,” added Julie Chung.

Addressing global challenges, Ambassador Chung acknowledged the impact of shipping delays caused by Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, economic headwinds from Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and other political flashpoints. She stressed the importance of planning, mitigating, and navigating these challenges effectively.

The United States, she noted, is already supporting Sri Lanka through Development Finance Corporation loans for SMEs, entrepreneurial training, and technical assistance from the Treasury Department and USAID on renewable energy, procurement, and tax revenue reform. As the leading export market for Sri Lanka, the US continues to be a significant contributor to the Sri Lankan economy.