Sri Lankan envoy meets NSA Ajit Doval; holds discussion on bilateral relations
The visit is being seen as an opportunity to reset bilateral ties after they were hit by the visit of the Chinese surveillance vessel Yuan Wang 5 to Sri Lanka’s Hambantota port last August
Sri Lankan high commissioner Milinda Moragoda met National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Monday to discuss priority areas for cooperation ahead of a planned visit to Colombo by external affairs minister S Jaishankar.
Moragoda and Doval discussed issued pertaining to bilateral relations.
“The discussion focused on mutual strategic interests of the two countries and priority areas for cooperation,” the Sri Lankan high commission said in a brief statement.
The meeting was part of regular and ongoing dialogue between the Sri Lankan envoy and the NSA, the statement said without giving details.
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The meeting also came ahead of a planned visit to Sri Lanka later this week, though both sides are yet to make an official announcement regarding it.
The visit is being seen as an opportunity to reset bilateral ties after they were hit by the visit of the Chinese surveillance vessel Yuan Wang 5 to Sri Lanka’s Hambantota port last August.
It will also help take forward discussions on restructuring Sri Lanka’s debt amid an unprecedented economic crisis.
India and the US had opposed the Yuan Wang 5’s visit.
The Sri Lankan government initially asked the Chinese side to defer the ship’s visit but later made a U-turn and allowed the vessel to call at Hambantota for replenishment.
The Sri Lankan side is also keen on India’s help for debt restructuring negotiations.
India provided aid worth nearly $4 billion last year to help Sri Lanka cope with the economic crisis, which resulted in the country defaulting on its dollar debt to preserve foreign currency to pay for food and fuel.
The concurrence of China and India, which are not members of the Paris Club, for debt restructuring is essential for Sri Lanka to meet conditions for a $2.9-billion bailout package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).