Jaishankar to visit Colombo on June 20

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will arrive in Colombo on June 20, in his official first visit to a neighbouring country since the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA)’s coalition government assumed charge in India earlier this month.

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Confirming his Indian counterpart’s visit, Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Ali Sabry told The Hindu on Tuesday that projects that India and Sri Lanka have agreed to jointly implement will be reviewed. “We will review progress in projects in various sectors such as renewable energy and connectivity, and look at ways to expedite them,” Mr. Sabry said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s possible visit to Sri Lanka this year will also be discussed, he said. In addition to holding talks with the Sri Lankan leadership, EAM Jaishankar will meet politicians across Sri Lankan political parties that are preparing for national elections scheduled this year.

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On June 10, Mr. Jaishankar called on President Ranil Wickremesinghe who was in New Delhi for the swearing in ceremony of PM Modi. Following the meeting Mr. Wickremesinghe’s office said Mr. Jaishankar spoke on the “swift resumption of development projects initiated in Sri Lanka with Indian investments, which had been halted midway.” Further, Mr. Jaishankar highlighted plans for an industrial zone in the eastern district of Trincomalee to be established by the Indian government, which “will attract numerous Indian investors and potentially investors from other countries”, the statement said.

In a joint vision statement released during President Wickremesinghe’s visit to New Delhi in in July 2023, the two countries noted that the ongoing cooperation in developing the Trincomalee oil tank farms was “a reflection of our endeavour to develop mutually beneficial cooperation projects”. Further, they agreed to develop Trincomalee as “a national and regional hub of industry, energy and economic activity”. India is partnering Sri Lanka in its push for renewable energy, through solar, LNG and wind power projects in the island nation’s north and east.

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However, the  $ 442-million wind energy project of Adani Green has run into trouble, with at least two cases filed in Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court recently, challenging it on grounds of environmental impact.