We Have No Hidden Agenda In Sri Lanka
Sunday, April 12, 2015
Chinese Deputy Head of Mission
From the day the new Government took office, China’s dominance in Sri Lanka has been slowly pushed to the back seat. The suspension of the mega Port City project was the biggest blow the Chinese faced. In an interview with The Sunday Leader, the Deputy Head of Mission at the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka, Ren Faqiang, expressed regret over the manner in which China has come under fire over several development projects and said that while China had only intended to assist Sri Lanka, the allegations raised against some Chinese projects are tarnishing China’s image. He said that if the Port City project dispute cannot be resolved, then the two parties should resolve it in court as there is a legal agreement and that can have drastic consequences if either party fails to uphold their part of the bargain.
Following are excerpts of the full interview:
By Camelia Nathaniel
Q: China has been in recent times been accused of being a close ally of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his regime. Is this true?
A: No, that is certainly not true. China is a friend of Sri Lanka and irrespective of who is in power, we will assist them in the best possible manner. It just so happened that when China offered its assistance to rebuild Sri Lanka after the war it was the Rajapaksa’s who were in power that was elected by your own people.
A: No, that is certainly not true. China is a friend of Sri Lanka and irrespective of who is in power, we will assist them in the best possible manner. It just so happened that when China offered its assistance to rebuild Sri Lanka after the war it was the Rajapaksa’s who were in power that was elected by your own people.
