Amid concerns in India, a Chinese “spy ship” docked at a Sri Lankan port on Tuesday. Some Lankan Parliamentarians there objected to the arrival of the research ship, but the Chinese envoy to Colombo termed the visit as “very natural”.
Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe tried to allay India’s fears and said China will not be allowed to use the facility for “military purposes”.
Making this assertion, he told a foreign newspaper on Sunday, “The present ship did not come under the category of military. It came under the category of a research ship. That is how we permitted the ship to come to Hambantota.”
China on Tuesday said the activities of its high-tech research vessel will not affect the security of any country and should not be “obstructed” by any “third party,” as the ship berthed at Sri Lanka’s southern port of Hambantota amid Indian and US concerns.
The ship reached the Hambantota deep water port in southern part of the country, about 250 km from Colombo, at 8.20 am local time and will leave for onward journey on August 22 after replenishments.
India is wary of the capabilities of the ship Yuan Wang 5 as it can track ballistic missiles and satellites, thereby snooping on Indian military installations.
Notwithstanding these apprehensions, India on Monday gifted a Dornier aircraft to enhance the surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities of the Sri Lankan air force and navy.
The Chinese ship was earlier scheduled to arrive on August 11 but was delayed after Sri Lanka asked China to defer its arrival. On Saturday, however, Sri Lanka gave permission for the ship to drop anchor on August 16. China had blamed India for pressurising Sri Lanka for deferring the arrival. India has rejected the “insinuations”.
Sri Lanka said the security clearance was granted from the Ministry of Defence for the visit of the vessel for replenishment purposes during the stipulated period.
It said no rotation of personnel would take place during the call and the Sri Lankan Government was requested to provide the necessary assistance by the Chinese embassy in Colombo.
The security and cooperation in the neighbourhood are of utmost priority in handling the issue of the Chinese vessel “Wang Yang 5”, the Foreign Ministry here said in a statement.
Given India’s apprehensions about the ship, the Sri Lankan Government held consultations at a high-level through diplomatic channels with all parties concerned, with a view to resolving the matter in a spirit of friendship, mutual trust and constructive dialogue, the Foreign Ministry said.
In light of concerns raised, the Ministry also sought further information and material that could assist in consultations on the matter, the statement said.
China’s envoy Qi Zhenhong, in Colombo played down the controversy surrounding the arrival of the ship, and termed such visits “very natural”. He was present at the port to welcome the ship. Several Parliamentarians from the breakaway group of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna party were also present. Incidentally, Sri Lankan Government has leased out the strategically important port for 99 years to China in 2017.
“This kind of research ship visiting Sri Lanka is very natural. In 2014 a similar ship came here,” the Chinese envoy told reporters when asked about the visit. Asked about the Indian concerns, the Ambassador said, “I don’t know, you should ask the Indian friends.”
The ship maintained a very strict security operation with no one being allowed on board. There was no customary military band to welcome the ship.
Commenting on the ship’s arrival, the Cabinet spokesman Bandula Gunawardena said the issue was settled amicably. “Relations with all countries are important to us,” Gunawardena said.
The security and cooperation in the neighborhood are of utmost priority in handling the issue of the Chinese vessel Wang Yang 5, the Foreign Ministry here said in a statement.
SriLanka’s Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA) Leader and Colombo’s Member of Parliament, Mano Ganesan, in a statement said, “Chinese (spy) vessel coming to Lankan waters is simply wrong. China is far away. India is close to us here. Indian state considering this as a challenge to its national security is very reasonable. Besides, India is the country which has provided near USD 4 billion to us in our time of crisis.”
India has traditionally taken a stern view of Chinese military vessels in the Indian Ocean and has protested such visits with Sri Lanka in the past.
The ties between India and Sri Lanka had come under strain after Colombo permitted a Chinese nuclear-powered submarine to dock in one of its ports in 2014.
China is the main creditor of Sri Lanka with investment in infrastructure. Debt restructuring of Chinese loans would be key to the island’s success in the ongoing talks with the International Monetary Fund for a bailout.
India on the other hand has been Sri Lanka’s lifeline in the ongoing economic crisis. India has been at the forefront of extending economic assistance of nearly USD 4 billion to Sri Lanka during the year as the island nation is grappling with the worst economic crisis since independence in 1948.
Since 2020, at least 50 Chinese research vessels have been spotted in the Indian Ocean region and sources said at any given time now four to five such spy ships are in the area.