COLOMBO, Aug 18: Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe has emphasised the importance of strengthening economic cooperation and regional integration with Japan to India, with a special focus on deepening ties with New Delhi, as his country seeks to emerge from bankruptcy.
Wickremesinghe’s comments came as he was virtually addressing the Head of State Session of the 3rd Voice of Global South Summit, held under the theme “An Empowered Global South for a Sustainable Future.” From the north-central town of Anuradhapura yesterday.
The conference, chaired by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, brought together heads of state from various countries.
Reflecting on Indo-Sri Lankan relations, the President emphasised the “vision” statement shared between the two nations, which celebrates their historical cooperation and lays the foundation for future collaboration.
He expressed optimism that this vision will lead to stronger integration between Sri Lanka and India across various sectors.
President Wickremesinghe highlighted Sri Lanka’s strategic commitment to expanding economic partnerships across Asia, particularly through the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). The President noted that as the Bay of Bengal region emerges as a hub of economic growth, the significance of BIMSTEC continues to rise.
Sri Lanka, as a member, seeks closer economic integration with India and is exploring economic cooperation agreements extending from Japan to India, his office said in a statement.
President Wickremesinghe also expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Modi and the people of India for their support during Sri Lanka’s recent economic crisis. The President acknowledged that India’s assistance played a vital role in helping Sri Lanka navigate the challenges of the past two years and emerge from bankruptcy.
“Sri Lanka thanks India for hosting the third virtual seminar on Voices of the Global South. This series enables us to engage with each other to understand our different viewpoints while also helping us arrive at a common stance on many issues confronting the South,” he said.
“We have reached a point where the West can no longer dominate global leadership and, furthermore, has become part of the problem. Ukraine and Gaza are prime examples, which I will not address as they have already been discussed by previous speakers. In this context, we must appreciate India’s efforts to strengthen the Global South”.
Deliberating on the economic crisis, Wickremesinghe said Sri Lanka had reached agreements with the Official Creditor Countries, the Export-Import Bank of China, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank to emerge from bankruptcy.
“At this stage, I must acknowledge the generosity of Prime Minister Modi and India, whose contributions made it possible for us to survive the two years of bankruptcy, which imposed a heavy burden on our people. The Vision Statement agreed upon by both our countries outlines the path for closer relations, emphasizing our 2,000-year history of cooperation. This will ultimately lead to deeper integration between our nations across many sectors”.
Sri Lanka will be finalising the Comprehensive Economic and Technological Agreement with India, he said.
“We will also inaugurate connectivity in power, transport, and land, and we will focus on the development of Trincomalee Harbour, among other projects we have agreed upon. These efforts will help us upgrade our knowledge and technology, enabling us to move towards a digital economy. I must express my gratitude to India for the assistance it has provided”.
“I must thank India, which, since its independence, has worked to unite Afro-Asian countries and for the role it continues to play in forging closer unity among all of us,” he added. (PTI)
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