New Sri Lankan President Anura Dissanayake to visit India from Dec 15: Here's what's on agenda
India-Sri Lanka ties have seen several twists and turns in the recent past. The visit from the Sri Lankan President will be instrumental in strengthening the relations of both countries.
by Edited By: Mohit Pandey · India TVSri Lanka on Tuesday announced that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake will be undertaking a two-day visit to India from December 15. This will be Dissanayake's first overseas visit after assuming office as the President in September. During his visit, the Sri Lankan President will meet President Droupadi Murmu and PM Narendra Modi, Cabinet spokesman Nalinda Jayathissa said in Colombo. He will be accompanied by Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath as well as Minister of Finance Anil Jayantha Fernando. The visit by Dissanayake will give a boost to India-Sri Lanka ties as both countries look at future prospects with a change of guard in Colombo.
Earlier, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who made his visit to Sri Lanka in less than a fortnight after Dissanayake’s victory, extended invitation to the Sri Lankan president. It is to be noted that Jaishankar was the first foreign dignitary to visit Sri Lanka after Dissanayake’s government came into power in the island nation.
India-Sri Lanka relations in recent times
In April 2022, the island nation declared its first-ever sovereign default for the first time since gaining Independence from Britain in 1948. The unprecedented financial chaos caused the ouster of the then president Gotabaya Rajapaksa in 2022 amid the civil unrest. India at that time had pitched in with about USD 4 billion in assistance to enable the Sri Lanka's recovery from a deep economic crisis.
Sir Lanka's importance in India's geopolitical aspirations
Sri Lanka, which is India’s key maritime neighbour in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), has a special place in its initiatives such as ‘SAGAR’ (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and the ‘Neighbourhood First Policy.’ However, while in Opposition, Dissanayake had expressed his reservations about some of the Indian projects, especially the sustainable energy projects run by the Adani Group. In the run-up to the election, Dissanayake had pledged to annul those projects if voted to power, claiming that the projects were inimical to Sri Lankan interests.