Advertisements

looking beyond borders

foreign policy and global economy

Archive for the tag “Sri Lanka”

21 May 2019

Is Sri Lanka Really A Victim Of China’s ‘Debt Trap’?

The economic reality is that Sri Lanka leased out Hambantota port to China largely due to a persistent balance of payment (BOP) crisis resulting from the reduction of trade over the years even while external debt servicing costs have been soaring. Sri Lank faced a severe shortage of foreign reserves in light of the upcoming debt servicing payments, due to the maturity of international sovereign bonds. Therefore, the country had to look for various avenues to obtain foreign currency inflows. Leasing out Hambantota port was one of the ways to increase the country’s foreign reserves.

Read Here – The Diplomat

Advertisements
Posted in Asia and tagged , , , , | Leave a comment
12 May 2019

Next Hambantota? Welcome To The Chinese-Funded US$1.4 Billion Port City Colombo In Sri Lanka

Port City Colombo, an ambitious Chinese-funded project to build a new metropolis on a 665-acre island reclaimed from the sea, is set to rise just off the popular spot in a couple of decades. Rising in tandem, however, are concerns about the amount Beijing is lending Colombo, and the circumstances of those loans – with the controversial China-backed Hambantota Port looming large in Sri Lankans’ memory.

Read Here – South China Morning Post

Also Read: Sri Lanka Rejects Fears Of China’s ‘Debt-Trap Diplomacy’ In Belt And Road Projects

Posted in Asia and tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment
06 May 2019

How the Sri Lanka Attacks Will Ripple Across South Asia

Despite the temptation to blame violent extremism on foreign fighters returning from Iraq and Syria and the subsequent rise of the Islamic State’s virtual caliphate, the fact is that the seeds of extremism in South Asia were sown long ago by elites from Kabul to Colombo. Often dressed up in the garb of anti-imperialism and nationalism, their brand of exclusionary politics, based on nativism and sectarianism, barely masks a deep and abiding commitment to a status quo of social inequality.

Read Here – World Politics Review

Posted in Asia and tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment
05 May 2019

During Its Civil War, Sri Lanka Was a Garrison State; Will The Easter Attacks Turn It Back Into One?

The Easter Sunday attacks in Sri Lanka against Christian targets that killed hundreds raises obvious concerns of remilitarizing a society still getting over the scars of war. The worst violence the country has seen since its longstanding civil war ended almost exactly ten years ago is naturally being discussed at least partly in that war’s context. But while the means of warfare are similar, the motivations are different.

Read Here – Modern War Institute

Posted in Asia and tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment
26 Apr 2019

Asia Is The New Ground Zero For Islamist Terror

The murder of more than 250 churchgoers, tourists, and other civilians in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday should serve as a reminder that Asia is now the world’s leading site of Islamist extremism. The region’s leaders must either address the problem at its source or prepare for more bloodshed in the coming years and decades.

Read Here – Project Syndicate

Also Read: Easter Sunday Bombings Point To Colombo’s Failure In Bridging Communal Faultlines

Posted in Asia and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
22 Apr 2019

India Sent Alert, But Why Sri Lanka’s Guard Was Down

India passed on specific intelligence earlier this month to Sri Lankan authorities that a terrorist attack was imminent there. However, Sri Lanka’s guard was clearly down, with the country shut down since April 12 for the Sinhala-Tamil new year, Good Friday and Easter. It speaks of how much Sri Lanka has got used to its peace of the last decade that the warnings were not considered actionable by the security apparatus.

Read Here – The Indian Express

Also Read: What’s Behind The Terrorist Attacks In Sri Lanka?

Posted in Asia and tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment
21 Apr 2019

Bombs Kill More Than 200 In Sri Lankan Churches, Hotels On Easter Sunday

Over 200 people were killed and at least 450 injured in bomb blasts that ripped through churches and luxury hotels in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, the first major attack on the Indian Ocean island since the end of a civil war 10 years ago. Seven people were arrested and three police officers were killed during a security forces raid on a house in the Sri Lankan capital several hours after the rash of attacks, some of which officials said were suicide bombs.

Read Here – Reuters

Also Read: Why Sri Lanka Risks Return To Violence

 

Posted in Asia and tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment
06 Jan 2019

The Future Of Democracy In South Asia

On November 14, a fight broke out in the Sri Lankan Parliament. When the Speaker tried to call a vote, a group of MPs heckled him and rushed the podium. A rival faction tried to push the hecklers back. Men traded punches. One brandished a knife. A lawmaker cut himself trying to steal the Speaker’s microphone and ended up in the hospital.

Read Here – Foreign Affairs

Posted in Asia and tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment
13 Dec 2018

Ousted Sri Lankan PM Wickremesinghe Gets Majority In Parliament Vote

Sri Lanka’s ousted prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe garnered a majority in parliament on Wednesday, weeks after being sacked by President Maithripala Sirisena in a controversial move that plunged the island nation into political turmoil. As many as 117 out of 225 lawmakers in parliament voted to pass a confidence motion in his leadership.

Read Here – The Wire

Posted in Asia and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
14 Nov 2018

Sri Lanka Parliament ‘Votes Against Newly Appointed PM Rajapaksa’

Sri Lanka’s parliament passed a no-confidence motion against newly appointed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and his government on Wednesday, throwing the country deeper into crisis. The move comes a day after the Supreme Court overturned a presidential decree dissolving the legislature and calling for snap elections.

Read Here – Al Jazeera

Posted in Asia and tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Post Navigation

← Older Entries
%d bloggers like this: