Sri Lanka promises to end deadlock over mega Chinese project

The Chinese special envoy to Sri Lanka on Friday said the new leadership in Colombo has promised to end the stalemate over the stalled Colombo Port City project that has become a bone of contention between the two countries.

“Sri Lankan leaders have expressed commitment to moving forward the project. I am confident Colombo Port City will be completed in three to five years,” said Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Liu Zhenmin at the end of a two-day visit to Sri Lanka to meet its top leaders.

Colombo Port City, a reclamation real estate project the size of Monaco, is among the several big-ticket Chinese-backed infrastructure ventures put on hold since China-friendly Mahinda Rajapaksa lost the presidential election in January.

Inaugurated by President Xi Jinping in September and financed by state-controlled and Hong Kong-listed China Communications Construction Co (CCCC), the Chinese see the project as an indicator of the new Maithripala Sirisena government’s commitment to continue strong bilateral ties.

China sends special envoy to Sri Lanka to mend ties

The Sirisena administration has made it clear that it will not follow the last government’s China-centric policies and avoid the over-dependence on Chinese investments, which it associates with Rajapaksa’s graft-tainted rule. But it also realises the importance of Chinese investments and is trying to reconcile poll-time rhetoric with economic realities.

In more signs that efforts are on to put Colombo Port City back on track, cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne on Thursday said the cabinet had agreed to appoint a fresh committee to address the issues surrounding the project so that it can continue.