The Sri Lankan high commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda on Monday said that former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa said Sri Lanka’s relationship with India is akin to that shared between brothers and sisters. Moragoda said that Rajapaksa used to say: “China is a close friend but India is our brother and sister.”
Moragoda also said that India’s security interests are ‘our own security interests.’
“Rajapaksa used to always say China is a very, very close friend but India is our brother and sister…. Within a family you can have quarrels but finally it is your family,” Moragoda was quoted as saying by news agency ANI during an interaction at the Indian Women’s Press Corps.
Moragoda then went on to elaborate upon the historical relationship between both nations. He referred to Goddess Sita and Princess Sanghamitta who formed a bridge between Sri Lanka and India.
“Our relationship is very special. There will be ups and downs. The relationship is definitely asymmetrical but special,” Moragoda added.
He also took the opportunity to acknowledge steps taken by the Indian government to help Sri Lanka cope with its worst economic crisis. He said he is grateful for the support extended.
“India has not only helped us with funding but also has spoken with the IMF and other development partners as well as encouraging them to support us,” Moragoda acknowledged.
India has extended aid worth USD 3.8 billion, including lines of credit, a currency swap and deferring of loan repayments.
It was revealed that India emerged as Sri Lanka’s largest bilateral lender with a total of $968 million in loans in four months of 2022. India surpassed China this year as it was the biggest lender from 2017 to 2021.
While Sri Lanka was embroiled in an economic crisis due to its own policies, Chinese loans, which some see as debt traps, further exacerbated the problem.
India has so far extended eight Lines of Credit (LOCs) to Sri Lanka amounting to $1850.64 million in the last ten years, the Lok Sabha was informed earlier this year during the monsoon session.
Moragoda, without referring directly to the Chinese spy ship Yuan Wang 5 docking controversy said: “There was no intention of (undermining). India’s security interests are our own security interests. The President made this clear recently that understanding is that. It’s a question of how we implement it… this is a process.”
He said the decision was taken in haste as the country was seeing widespread protests and former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa had only fled the nation.
He also spoke about the issue of Indian fishermen being apprehended by Sri Lankan authorities for allegedly crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line and fishing in Sri Lankan waters and said that discussions are on to resolve the issues.
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