India, Lanka likely to sign port development deal

India and Sri Lanka may next week give final shape to a deal for jointly developing the Trincomalee Port in the north-eastern region of the island nation.

Sri Lanka Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will arrive here on Tuesday on a five-day visit. His meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to focus on Sri Lanka’s offer to India for developing the Trincomalee Port. Modi and Wickremesinghe are also expected to discuss Sri Lanka’s proposal for India and Japan to jointly develop a Liquefied Natural Gas terminal in Trincomalee, sources told DH.

Both the deals are likely to be signed during Modi’s visit to the island nation next month to attend the celebrations marking the International Day of Vesak or Buddha Purnima.

Modi and Wickremesinghe will also discuss ways to speed up negotiations on the much-awaited Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement.

Colombo has put forward the proposal to India for developing the Trincomalee Port to strike a balance between India and China to allay New Delhi’s concern over Beijing’s bid to expand its footprints and build strategic assets in and around Sri Lanka.