Sri Lanka has declared a moratorium on foreign research ships entering its waters for a year amid concerns from India over Chinese research vessels docking in its neighborhood.
Though the moratorium comes ostensibly for capacity building it is seen as a reaction to growing concerns in India.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Niluka Kadurugamuwa told The Associated Press on Friday that the moratorium relates to all countries and will allow local researchers to build capacity be on a par with their foreign counterparts in joint researches.
Chinese ships have docked in Colombo in recent years for research based on agreements between between agencies in China and Sri Lanka.
Last October, Chinese research ship Shi Yan 6 docked in Colombo port for several days, while in 2022 the navy vessel Yuan Wang 5 docked at Hambantota in southern Sri Lanka. There were fears in India that these vessels could be used to monitor the region.
China has been trying to expand its influence in Sri Lanka, which is located on one of the world’s busiest shipping routes in what India considers part of its strategic backyard.
Beijing was once widely seen as having an upper hand with its free-flowing loans and infrastructure investments. But Sri Lanka’s economic collapse in 2022 provided an opportunity for India as New Delhi stepped in with massive financial and material assistance.
Both countries recently agreed on terms with Sri Lanka separately for restructuring its debt, which enabled the disbursement of a second installment of a $2.9 billion package from the International Monetary Fund aimed at helping the island nation out of its dire economic crisis.
Sri Lanka declared bankruptcy in April 2022 with more than $83 billion of debt, more than half owed to foreign creditors. China accounts for about 10% of Sri Lanka’s loans, trailing Japan and the Asian Development Bank.
Sri Lanka borrowed heavily from China over the past decade for infrastructure projects including a seaport, airport and a city being built on reclaimed land. The projects failed to earn enough revenue to pay for the loans, and in 2017, Sri Lanka leased the seaport in Hambantota to China.
