Chinese Embassy Calls for Urgent Meeting With Sri Lanka After Vessel Entry Withdrawn: Report

The Chinese Embassy has reportedly called for an urgent meeting with Sri Lanka’s government after Colombo requested that the planned visit of a Chinese vessel be postponed following India voicing security concerns.

Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry wrote to the Chinese Embassy on Aug. 5 requesting that China defer the arrival of its space and satellite tracking research vessel Yuan Wang 5 “until further consultations are made on this matter.”

In response, the Chinese Embassy sought an urgent meeting with the Sri Lankan top officials to discuss the matter, local media have reported, citing sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe also met with Chinese ambassador Qi Zhenhong on Aug. 4, during which he reaffirmed the United Nations Charter principles of territorial integrity and Sri Lanka’s commitment to China’s “One China” principle, in which the ruling communist party claims Taiwan as part of its territory. Only the Taliban in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan recognize China’s policy on Taiwan.

“Countries must refrain from provocations which further escalate the current global tensions,” Wickremesinghe said in a post on Twitter, emphasizing the need for “mutual respect and non-interference in the internal affairs of countries.”

Sri Lanka’s deferral request came after India warned that it would take “all necessary measures” to safeguard against the Chinese vessel, which is due to be in the Hambantota port from Aug. 11 to Aug. 17 for “refueling purposes.”

The crisis-hit nation had also initiated diplomatic talks with both India and China to reach “an amicable solution” regarding the vessel’s arrival to avoid any potential clashes.

The Yuan Wang 5 ship is used to conduct “satellite control and research tracking of China’s satellites in the northwestern part of the Indian Ocean region through August and September,” according to the Belt & Road Initiative in Sri Lanka.

According to Marine Traffic, the research vessel departed Jiangyin, China, on July 13 and is currently in the East China Sea en route to Hambantota.

Local media reported that the former government had given approval for the vessel to dock in the port just a day earlier on July 12, during the mass protests that had thrown the government into turmoil.

The Sri Lankan government leased the strategic port to China for 99 years in 2017 after failing to repay $1.4 billion in loans.

India’s Concerns

India worries that the Chinese-built and leased port of Hambantota will be used by China as a military base in India’s backyard. The $1.5 billion port is near the main shipping route from Asia to Europe.

Diplomatic relations between India and China have been strained since clashes in 2020 between troops along a remote Himalayan border. At least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed in the fighting, which led to a massive build-up of troops on both sides.

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said in May that while China had expressed hopes to restore normalcy with India, from India’s perspective, the threat to the restoration of peace and tranquility on the border was ongoing aggressions by the Chinese regime.

“The frictions and tensions that arise from China’s deployments since April 2020 cannot be reconciled with a normal relationship between two neighbors,” Jaishankar told reporters.

China is one of Sri Lanka’s biggest lenders and has also financed airports, roads and railways, unsettling India. As Sri Lanka battles its worst economic crisis in seven decades, India this year alone has provided it nearly $4 billion in support.

Reuters contributed to this report.