Lankan cabinet clears Chinese port deal
The Dollar Business Bureau Sri Lanka's cabinet has cleared a hitherto controversial Chinese built port deal after substantial changes. Under the new deal according to Reuters, Hambantota that was built by Chinese now relegates the Chinese to running its operations while the overall security is retained in the hands of the Sri Lankan government. Initially, the development of Hambantota by the Chinese, which is part of the modern day Silk Route across Asia and beyond, sparked security fears in the region as China could use the port for docking its naval vessels. To add to these fears China planned to acquire 15000 acres to develop an industrial zone. Though details of the new agreement have not been made public, a Reuters spokesperson revealed that, ...
Sri Lanka suspends controversial Chinese port city project
The Dollar Business Bureau The current Sri Lankan government has decided to temporarily suspend the construction of the controversial US $ 1.5 billion Chinese port city project citing that the real estate deal with China was signed without cabinet approval, without following procedures and is a corrupt project by the erstwhile Rajapaksha regime. However, the growing co-operation between the Narendra Modi government and the newly elected Maithripala Sirisena’s Lankan government is also looked upon as one of the major reasons why the island nation is not going ahead with the project. Mid-February, India and Sri Lanka on Monday discussed economic cooperation, maritime security and bilateral investments, besides other aspects of bilateral relations and international issues for a more balanced ...
