Saturday Dec 21, 2024
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The country’s first Executive President J.R. Jayewardene had reportedly said, “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth” when asked for his reaction to the infamous airdrop of supplies over Jaffna by the Indian Air Force on 4 June 1987. The Indian action was in response to embargos on goods entering the peninsula by the Government in a bid to curtail terrorist activity. What followed in July that year was the signing of the Indo-Lanka accord and the rest as they say is history.
Between then and now, much has changed in the dynamics of relations between Sri Lanka and its closest neighbours India with the recent State visit by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to New Delhi aimed at affirming the age-old ties.
The 1980s onwards, the main focus of successive Indian governments was the issues affecting the Tamil population of the country but after the defeat of the LTTE in 2009, and the Mahinda Rajapaksa administration cosying up to China, India has shifted its focus toward more defence and economic cooperation between the two countries with issues such as devolution of power and Tamil rights taking a back seat.
When President Dissanayake made his first overseas tour, he was entering uncharted territory but was keen to make a good impression. He had to ditch decades of anti-India baggage the JVP had been carrying around and play the role of affable and pragmatic neighbour who has the interests of India at heart. In remarks made during his visit, President Dissanayake pledged that Sri Lanka will not allow its soil to be used against Indian interests. This has seen the new mantra of the NPP/JVP since it realised that the party was on course for a historic election victory at last October’s Presidential election.
The joint statement after the visit revealed that the two sides have discussed some major projects including land connectivity, establishment of a high-capacity power grid interconnection between the two countries as well as an India, Sri Lanka and UAE project for a multi-product pipeline from India to Sri Lanka for supply of affordable and reliable energy.
But can and should the President really take forward these large projects that the Indians are keen to get off the ground without much delay as they are likely to be met with resistance from some sections of the population in Sri Lanka? These projects have not been widely discussed in the country though they were in the pipeline for several years. People have no understanding of the pros and cons of the implementation of such projects.
The recent case of Bangladesh where India’s Adani Power, which exports power to Dhaka reduced electricity supply to its neighbour in a bid to recover $ 800 million in dues, has made some Sri Lankans nervous with fears the country would one day face a similar situation once they barter away power supply to another country.
There were also discussions during the President’s visit on defence cooperation agreements which will be closely watched by China. President Dissanayake will visit China next month and has a delicate balancing act in hand as he juggles the two Asian giants but the interests of the country must come first over other concerns.
India’s quick action to assist Sri Lanka during the 2022 economic crisis has placated many Sri Lankans. That aside centuries-old religious and cultural ties bind the two countries, and this remains solid.
But the Government needs to tread carefully on these mega projects and there needs to be a bigger public discussion on what exactly connectivity projects entail.
Governments come and governments go, but such projects remain and hence, the Government first and foremost needs to take the people into confidence and disclose what agreements it plans to sign with India as well as other countries. It’s not a bad idea to look a gift horse in the mouth at times as there are all kinds of horses, including Trojan ones.