Sri Lanka buckles under pressure from India, asks China to defer visit of PLA recon ship

Yuan Wang 5 is one of the four of its class used by the Strategic Support Force of the Chinese (PLA to track satellites and intercontinental ballistic missiles

Sri Lanka has finally buckled under pressure from India and requested China to defer the visit of its recon ship ‘Yuan Wang 5’ to the Hambantota Port of the island nation.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Sri Lankan Government has written to the Embassy of People’s Republic of China in Colombo, requesting that the arrival date of the vessel “Yuan Wang 5” in the Hambantota Port should be deferred until further consultations between the two governments on the matter, according to the sources in New Delhi.

New Delhi could prod President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s government in Colombo into action and made it address its security concerns over the visit of Chinese PLA’s reconnaissance ship in Hambantota – even as the communist country reached out to two other neighbours of India – Bangladesh and Nepal. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in Dhaka on Saturday. He will host Nepalese Foreign Minister Narayan Khadka in Beijing next week.

Also Read | India reaches out to SL military officials near Hambantota ahead of arrival of China’s recon ship

The Yuan Wang 5 is one of the four of its class used by the Strategic Support Force of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to track satellites and intercontinental ballistic missiles. It of late sailed from a port in China and was scheduled to arrive at the Hambantota Port of Sri Lanka on August 11 next.

China earlier used its debt-trap diplomacy to force Sri Lanka to lease out the Hambantota Port to one of the state-owned companies of the communist country.

Beijing has since long been known for using its research ships not only for collecting hydrographic data, but also for maritime surveillance and gathering intelligence, be it in South China Sea or East China Sea or in other locations in the Indo-Pacific.

New Delhi is particularly concerned over China’s bid to build strategic maritime assets around India and its People’s Liberation Army Navy’s repeated forays in the Indian Ocean region.

The Embassy of India in Colombo over the past few days took up the issue with the office of the president of Sri Lanka. The Ministry of Defence of the Sri Lankan government, however, sought to allay New Delhi’s concerns, stating that Yuan Wang would dock at Hambantota Port only for refuelling and replenishing its stock of food and other essentials. India, however, continued to convey its concerns to the Sri Lankan government, which finally conveyed to the Chinese Government that the arrival of the ship should be deferred.

New Delhi was worried over the ship’s foray in the Indian Ocean region amid China’s growing belligerence across Taiwan Strait in the wake of the recent visit of the United States House of Representative, Nancy Pelosi, to Taipei.

“The government carefully monitors any developments having a bearing on India's security and economic interests, and takes all necessary measures to safeguard them,” Arindam Bagchi, the spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, had said in New Delhi last week, adding: “I think that should be a clear message.”

The then Sri Lankan government led by Mahinda Rajapaksa as President had in 2014 allowed a nuclear submarine of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy dock at the Colombo Port for days, raising hackles in New Delhi.