Sri Lanka says the Hambantota Port is not a \u2018debt trap\u2019 nor can it be used for military purposes by China.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf anybody is saying that the Chinese government gave its money to put Sri Lanka into a \u2018debt trap\u2019, I don\u2019t agree with that. It\u2019s an absolutely wrong conclusion,\u201d Karunasena Kodituwakku, the Ambassador of Sri Lanka to China, told CGTN\u2019s The Point.<\/p>\n
His comments came amid accusations from critics who said China is setting a \u201cdebt trap\u201d for Sri Lanka with its southern port of Hambantota. The first phase of the Port\u2019s construction was finished in 2010, with 85 percent of its cost funded by China.<\/p>\n
Facing severe losses and a heavy debt burden, Sri Lanka entered into a 99-year lease agreement with China Merchant Ports Holdings (CMPH) to revitalize the Port. The handover was made last December.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, we have difficulties paying back\u2026 but I must say that the Chinese government assisted the government of Sri Lanka to build this project. It is up to the government of Sri Lanka to build on the basis of feasibility studies, then to make business decisions. The Chinese government (has) never asked to hand over the Port to the Chinese government or to the Chinese venture. It was a proposal that came from Sri Lanka, asking partnership from China,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
As a response to media concerns that China is \u201cmilitarizing\u201d the Port, Kodituwakku pointed out that \u201cin Sri Lanka\u2019s case, from the very beginning, we have very clearly indicated to the Chinese side, it\u2019s only an economic venture.\u201d He said Sri Lanka does not allow anybody to interfere with the defense affairs of Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n
Sri Lanka decided to shift a naval base to Hambantota Port in July. Kodituwakku explained, \u201cThe security of Port Hambantota, the security of territorial coverage of Sri Lanka in the Indian Ocean, is an entire matter for Sri Lankan security forces. China never asks us. We never offered it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kodituwakku remains optimistic over the long-term prospects of the Port and the future of Sri Lanka\u2019s role in an emerging Asia.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow Asia is becoming the most important part of the world in global development. The Indian Ocean is a center for Southeast Asia, South Asia, East Africa, and the Middle East, so the future potential in Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka being the center in the Indian Ocean, is huge,\u201d he emphasized.<\/p>\n
Courtesy: Colombo Gazette<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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