Sri Lanka leader meets US, Russian envoys; foreign policy direction awaited
COLOMBO – Sri Lanka’s newly elected president, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, met the ambassadors of the United States and Russia to Colombo on Tuesday (Oct 1), with both envoys emphasizing the importance of bilateral relations with their respective countries.
Dissanayake, whose National People’s Power (NPP) coalition won the presidential election and is running an interim government with a three-member cabinet after dissolving parliament, is yet to spell out his government’s foreign policy.
The Janatha Vimukthi Peramun (JVP), which spearheads the NPP has in the past taken an anti-Indian stance and has raised concerns over Indian expansionism in Sri Lanka. And political and foreign policy analysts have seen Dissanayake as pro-Chinese and pro-Russian due to the JVP’s Marxist leanings.
Dissanayake met with US Ambassador Julie J. Chung at the Presidential Secretariat on Tuesday, before his meeting with the Russian envoy Levan S. Dzhagaryan.
The President’s Media Division (PMD) said Ambassador Chung had emphasized the importance of fostering robust bilateral relations between the United States and Sri Lanka, with particular focus being placed on enhancing diplomatic relations between the two nations, along with fostering economic and social cooperation in areas of mutual interest to both nations.
The discussion with Ambassador Dzhagaryan, who had conveyed a congratulatory message from Russian President Vladimir Putin, had focused on strengthening the longstanding bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and Russia.
“Both parties highlighted the importance of enhancing cooperation in key areas such as trade, investment, culture, and education while reaffirming their commitment to deepening diplomatic ties for the mutual benefit of both nations,” the PMD said.
Sri Lanka’s past governments faced consequences for following pro-US, pro-Indian, and pro-Chinese foreign policies, despite the country officially saying it was following a non-aligned foreign policy.
-economynext.com/ENCL
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