Sri Lanka has urged China to postpone a planned visit by a Chinese satellite tracker that has raised security concerns in India.
A vessel landed near the Indian coast late last month after New Delhi said it was closely monitoring developments related to the Chinese vessel that would affect its economic and security interests. Controversy erupted over its expected arrival.
Sri Lanka's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Monday that Yuan Wang 5 was given permission to anchor at Hambantota port last month for resupply from Thursday until 17 August. However, it asked China to postpone the visit "in consideration of the need for further consultations afterwards." He didn't mention why.
According to the analysis website MarineTraffic, Yuan Wang 5 is described as a research vessel. Security analysts say the ship also has advanced systems to monitor satellite, rocket and missile launches.
In response to reports that Colombo has postponed the ship's visit, Wang Wenbin, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing, said on Monday:
Without mentioning India, he said it was "morally irresponsible" to exploit Sri Lanka's vulnerability in dealing with the economic crisis, and "reported to stakeholders that China's maritime It urged them to stop scientific research activities from a rational point of view, which would "disrupt normal exchanges between China and Sri Lanka."
It highlights the diplomatic dilemma facing Sri Lanka in balancing relations with its rivals.
The Chinese government's growing footprint in Sri Lanka over the past 15 years has long caused unrest in India. New Delhi, in particular, is concerned that the Chinese government will use the Chinese-built Hambantota port as a strategic anchorage in the Indian Ocean. In 2017, Colombo leased the port to China for 99 years after failing to pay its debts.
The port is one of several infrastructure her projects that Beijing has built in Sri Lanka over the past decade, including railways and roads.
In the past six months, as Sri Lanka battled its worst economic crisis and faced virtual bankruptcy, New Delhi reached out to help its neighbors, offering a $4 billion credit line and , provided critical assistance, including food, fuel and medicine. and cooking gas. Analysts see this as an effort to build goodwill and restore some of India's lost influence in the country strategically located at the southern end along a heavily trafficked shipping lane.
When Sri Lanka negotiates a bailout with the International Monetary Fund, it will also need to involve China in restructuring about $5 billion in debt owed to Beijing.
For the time being, Sri Lanka appears to have succumbed to Indian pressure, according to Paikyasothy Saravanamthu, executive director of the Center for Policy Alternatives in Colombo. "The Chinese also don't want to be seen as retreating, so I think they are just praying for time to ease tensions." It will require skillful diplomacy to manage relations with two great powers whose relations have deteriorated over the past two years. “Sri Lanka needs to avoid a situation where both countries see their relationship with Colombo as a zero-sum game. Either you are pro-Indian or you are pro-Chinese,” he said Saravanamuttu. said.