April, 1, 2024
Chinese President Xi Jinping met PM Dinesh Gunawardena in Beijing last week & remembered the historic affinity & especially the spirit of the 1952 Rubber Rice pact signed before establishing diplomatic relations in 1957. He wished the ancient friendship to move forward with consolidated mutual trust, expanded practical cooperation, & advanced high quality Belt & Road cooperation (BRI – China’s 21st century international trade net). He reaffirmed to continue the support Great China provided SL to safeguard its sovereignty, independence & dignity. Historically China stood by SL whenever it had to shift its Capital as defense moves (from Anuradhapura to Jayawardenepura) & during the 30 year conflict when some states humiliated SL to balance their domestic politics. Sri Lankans in the coming millenniums shall remember President Xi as the one & only leader who helped them (in 2014) to expand the ever shrinking small island by initiating the Colombo Port City project. So far no country has ever supported another country in such a move.
The Colombo Port City & the Hambantota Port are two landmark ‘Conflict Prevention’ tools SL got from the Peoples Republic as part of the BRI Cooperation when SL ended its internal conflict with the political leadership of President Mahinda. Using these to earn from regional & international trade is essential for SL economic recovery & the SL Human Resource from the President to the Peasant has to be smart & strategic. The BRI is offering unprecedented opportunities to its partner nations to enhance; logistics, energy & industrial cooperation, digital economy, green economy, renewable energy, tourism & marine economy. Working with China can be a low risk, safe option (as China has never colonized any nation) to restructure its economy which crashed due to SL’s own shortsightedness. As President Xi stressed if China & SL continue to maintain the below ‘Five Principles’ of Peaceful Coexistence;
It will enhance SL capacity in coordinating international & regional affairs, safeguarding common interests, upholding international fairness & justice, & promoting the construction of a community with a shared future for humanity. Working with China honoring above in turn will ensure strength to face situations if a certain state deviate from respecting above.
India – Mannar Bridge
Such skills will be essential to attract the expanding Indian economy & create synergy with the neighbor who is historically a much stronger partner of the Silk Road & the BRI. If the proposed bridge between India & SL is constructed, above skills will strengthen Sri Lankans to face the challenges of managing culture & defense while earning money similar to the way “Singapore – Malaysia” railway & highway are managed by Singapore. It may indirectly contribute to peace in the Indian Ocean. PM Dinesh Gunawardena represented SL at the 2024 ‘Boao’ forum for Asia (BFA) which ended in Hainan, China last week. This year’s focused was "Asia and the World: Common Challenges, Shared Responsibilities”. Asians will have to develop skills to be peaceful & stable in a multi polar world which they will have to build for their own benefit.
Views expressed are personal.
