Modi''s Lanka visit seen as move to tame China influence
(MENAFN- Arab News) COLOMBO Sri Lanka: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi''s visit to Sri Lanka on Friday reflects a bounce back in bilateral relations as India seeks to mitigate China''s growing influence at New Delhi''s doorstep.
Sri Lanka is the last stop on Modi''s trip after visits to Indian Ocean island nations Seychelles and Mauritius. It comes on the heels of three decades of mostly rocky relations largely due to an ethnic separatist conflict in Sri Lanka.
Ties fell further to their lowest levels in the final years of the nine-year administration of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa whose pro-Chinese policies threatened India''s say in the region. Rajapaksa''s election defeat in January at the hands of Maithripala Sirisena has reversed that trend especially when Sirisena picked India for his first official visit.
Sri Lanka''s government is also reviewing China-funded infrastructure development and has suspended the $1.5 billion Colombo Port City project citing environmental issues and alleged corruption. The project to build a city on reclaimed land off the western coast came to be viewed as the face of Chinese influence in Sri Lanka. It was inaugurated in September during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Modi said on his official Twitter account this week that his aim is to boost relations. ''This visit is also part of my objective of maintaining frequent contact with our neighboring countries.
Sri Lanka is the last stop on Modi''s trip after visits to Indian Ocean island nations Seychelles and Mauritius. It comes on the heels of three decades of mostly rocky relations largely due to an ethnic separatist conflict in Sri Lanka.
Ties fell further to their lowest levels in the final years of the nine-year administration of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa whose pro-Chinese policies threatened India''s say in the region. Rajapaksa''s election defeat in January at the hands of Maithripala Sirisena has reversed that trend especially when Sirisena picked India for his first official visit.
Sri Lanka''s government is also reviewing China-funded infrastructure development and has suspended the $1.5 billion Colombo Port City project citing environmental issues and alleged corruption. The project to build a city on reclaimed land off the western coast came to be viewed as the face of Chinese influence in Sri Lanka. It was inaugurated in September during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Modi said on his official Twitter account this week that his aim is to boost relations. ''This visit is also part of my objective of maintaining frequent contact with our neighboring countries.
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