Sri Lankan-Chinese co-operation pledge
China and Sri Lanka pledged to further push forward their strategic co-operative partnership and inked a series of documents in such fields as economic co-operation, finance, medicare and transportation on Thursday.
During the talks with visiting Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in Beijing, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang hailed the profound friendship between the two countries, saying the bilateral ties have withstood the test of time. China is willing to deepen mutual trust, extend practical co-operation with Sri Lanka so as to take their strategic partnership of cooperation to a new height, Mr Li said. He said the continued development of China-Sri Lanka co-operation on major projects has brought benefits for the people of both countries. “We welcome the resumption of the Colombo Port City project, and stand ready to work with Sri Lanka to push forward the construction steadily,” said Mr Li. The Sri Lankan government officially informed the Chinese investors of resuming the construction of the multi-billion dollar Port City project last month, one year after its suspension. Mr Li called on both sides to speed up the negotiations on the second phase operation of the Hambantota Port in the southern part of Sri Lanka, so as to help Sri Lanka give full play to its geological advantage to become an important international logistic hub. He also called on both countries to conduct production capacity cooperation in order to exert China’s advantage on equipment manufacture and expedite Sri Lanka’s industrialisation. China encourages its companies to invest in Sri Lanka and participate in the co-operation in industrial parks, special economic zones, and the processing and manufacturing sector, Li said, calling for support from Sri Lanka. For his part, Mr Wickremesinghe said Sri Lanka, faced with the task of economic and social development, is willing to learn from China’s experience and develop greater synergies between its own strategies and China’s Belt and Road Initiative, jointly building the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road proposed by China. He said Sri Lanka will protect the lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies in line with its law and foster a sound environment for Chinese investors.
Xinhua