• Vivekananda International Foundation , in its latest research paper, said India may have every reason to feel relieved with President  Wickremesinghe at the helm of affairs 

By Kelum Bandara   

A leading Indian think tank said President Ranil Wickremesinghe who heads to Tokyo later this week to take part in the commemoration ceremony of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will get a chance to interact with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi .  

Vivekananda International Foundation , in its latest research paper , said India may have every reason to feel relieved with President Wickremesinghe (PRW) at the helm of affairs.   

“India has been his “international safety net” when he negotiated the cease-fire with LTTE in 2001. The quality of Sri Lanka (SL) diplomacy in India has undergone a sea-change since August 2021 thanks to the efforts of Milinda Morogoda, High Commissioner to India and his equation with the political leadership and strategic community.  
In past fortnight PRW has made two important statements on Sri Lanka-India relations. On Aug 14, he was present at a ceremony in Colombo to witness the handing over of a Dornier Maritime Recce and Surveillance Aircraft to the Sri Lankan Navy. Even more importantly he delivered an 8-minute speech giving his reflections on Indo-Lanka relations. It is very thought provoking. The speech and his presence at the ceremony have important connotations. This was in the backdrop of the controversy over the permission given by SL to a Chinese survey vessel to visit Hambantota. The speech is on YouTube.  

Even in his Throne Speech (Aug 03) to the Parliament, PRW devoted several minutes talking about India and it was exceptional as no other country was mentioned directly or indirectly. This is unprecedented in recent times that no Sri Lankan Head of State has used the parliamentary platform or diplomatic event to articulate positive statements on India. It can be surmised that these are indications of relations moving to the next level and greater positivity as well. It also underlined that he feels secure in his job.  

President Ranil Wickremesinghe heads to Tokyo later this week to take part in the commemoration ceremony of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. This will give him the golden opportunity to meet the Indian Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi and other heads of government and states. The focus will of course be on his meetings with PM Mr Modi and the road map ahead. It will give India a time to review past actions of the Sri Lankan government and to remove irritants preventing growth and development of bilateral relations. PRW’s interaction with the Chinese and other dignitaries including QUAD, ASEAN and Western countries should be watched with interest,” the paper said .