By TON Sri Lanka

The geo-political disagreements over Sri Lanka’s granting permission to the Chinese survey and tracking vessel Yuan Wag 5 at the Hambantota port from August 11 to 17, has blown over with India and the US finally taking an accommodative stance. The vessel, which was in the vicinity of the Hambantota port in South Sri Lanka, is finally docked now.

India had delivered a demarche to the Sri Lankan government expressing its objections to the docking of the vessel on the grounds that it could spy on vital Indian installations in South India. However, on Friday, India’s External Affairs Ministry categorically rejected that it had mounted pressure on Sri Lanka concerning the said vessel.

The Sri Lankan government had sought from the Indian High Commission and the US embassy, “solid causes” for opposing to the docking of the vessel. When they could not give such reasons, the Lankan government decided to grant permission to the vessel to berth at the harbor.

Earlier, due to the concerns raised by the Indian and US embassies, the Lankan Foreign Ministry had asked the Chinese Ambassador to “defer” the arrival of the vessel to give time for “consultations”.

The Chinese came back to say that the demand for postponement was intolerable as the vessel was on a flawlessly genuine scientific mission and was wanted to port only for replenishment. China suggested that Sri Lanka was being pressured to deny permission by a “third party” in violation of Sri Lankan dominion. The objection was “absurd”, China said in a communique released in Beijing.

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs thinks that Sri Lanka is a conveyance hub in the Indian Ocean. Many scientific exploration ships including those from China have stopped at the ports of Sri Lanka for resupplies. China has always exercised freedom of navigation in the high seas and fully respects the jurisdiction of coastal states in respect of scientific exploration activities within their jurisdictional waters.”

Sri Lanka is a sovereign state. It can develop relations with other countries, in light of its own growth interest. Collaboration between Sri Lanka and China are independently chosen by the two countries based on mutual interests. Mentioning security concerns is ridiculous, to pressure Sri Lanka. China urges the relevant parties to see China’s scientific exploration in a reasonable and sensible way and stop disturbing usual exchange of cooperation between China and Sri Lanka is not acceptable.

India’s criticism was that Sri Lanka had not kept it informed about the coming of the vessel. India and Sri Lanka are part of an institution called “Security and Growth for All in the Region” or SAGAR, that is intended to shape an inclusive and helpful approach to regional security. India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives are part of a scheme to keep track of activities in the Indian Ocean Region under the rubric of “Maritime Domain Awareness.

Sri Lanka should have informed India about the consent given to the vessel to dock in Hambantota, but it did not. Sri Lanka’s reasoning that the vessel is on a harmless scientific mission and not on an intelligence-gathering mission did not convince New Delhi and Washington. Colombo was felt constrained to ask China to defer the arrival of the vessel to allow time for consultations.

China’s subsequent rejection of the objections put Colombo in a fixed. It needed India’s financial support to control over the economic crisis. India had already loaned US$ 3.8 billion. On the other hand, Colombo could also not leave China, which had to collaborate to enable Sri Lanka to get an IMF bailout. In other words, Sri Lanka could not also alienate china to help clear the Sri Lankan mess.

However, none of the parties wanted Sri Lanka to sink. Therefore, a cooperation was worked out so that the vessel could dock. Since the Sri Lanka navy is in charge of security in Hambantota port though a Chinese company had taken it on a lease, that’s why Lankan naval officers boarded the ship.