EAM S. Jaishankar on Sri Lanka, raises the concern about the International Maritime Boundary Line
DELHI: EAM S. Jaishankar says, "Where Sri Lanka is concerned, again, Rajiv brings out the suspicions of history, of recent history. And I would say this is one relationship where the Modi government, frankly, had a somewhat difficult inheritance. And, you know, a lot of our challenges were how to reassure without in any way diluting our interests in that relationship."
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#Sjaishankar #Bangladesh #Northeast #IndiaBangladesh #Srilanka
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00:00So, if I were to move south to the Indian Ocean region, where Sri Lanka is concerned,
00:07again, Rajiv brings out the suspicions of history, of recent history.
00:14And I would say this is one relationship where the Modi government, frankly, had a somewhat
00:23difficult inheritance.
00:25And, you know, a lot of our challenges were how to reassure without in any way diluting
00:34our interest in that relationship.
00:41At this time, there are two problems, one in the public realm, which pertains to the
00:48international maritime boundary line, the fishing issue, which is a recurring issue,
00:53in particularly in the political space.
00:56And from a strategic national security perspective, China's presence and activities in respect
01:04of Sri Lanka.
01:06But I would say here, and again, that's a point which Rajiv recognizes, that there has
01:12been a significant shift in public perception about India in Sri Lanka, centered around
01:20the fact that when they were in such deep trouble, we were really the only country which
01:27came forward and came forward in a massive way and in a timely way.
01:31So if Sri Lanka has been able to recover significantly from where they were, a lot of it, I think,
01:41even the Sri Lankan politics and Sri Lankan public attributes it to the relationship.