SL ALLOWS ENTRY FOR CHINESE SHIP DESPITE INDIA’S CONCERNS

NEW DELHI: Sri Lanka’s government granted permission on Saturday for a controversial Chinese research vessel to visit the island despite neighbouring India’s concerns that it could spy on New Delhi’s military installations, officials said.

The Yuan Wang 5 is described as a research and survey vessel by international shipping and analytics sites, but according to Indian media it is a dual-use spy ship. New Delhi is suspicious of Beijing’s increasing presence in the Indian Ocean and influence in Sri Lanka, seeing both as being firmly within its sphere of influence. The Yuan Wang 5 was originally due to call at Sri Lanka’s Chinese-run Hambantota port on August 11, only for Colombo to ask Beijing to indefinitely defer the visit following India’s objections.

But Sri Lanka’s harbour master, Nirmal P Silva, said he had received foreign ministry clearance for the ship to call at Hambantota from August 16 to 22.

“The diplomatic clearance was received by me today. We will work with the local agent appointed by the vessel to ensure logistics at the port,” Silva told AFP. Foreign ministry sources confirmed that Colombo had renewed permission for the visit, which had initially been granted on July 12, a day before former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled following months of protests over worst-ever economic crisis.

Rajapaksa -- whose brother Mahinda borrowed heavily from China while president from 2005 to 2015 -- resigned after escaping to Singapore. Tens of thousands of protesters overran his palace and home in Colombo after accusing him of mismanagement in an economic crisis that has led to acute shortages of food, fuel and medicines.