Times of India
Lankan Trade Winds
If Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's first trip to India after assuming office in December last was to win New Delhi's support for the peace process, his second visit within six months is to push for a radical recasting of bilateral economic cooperation.
Mr Wickremesinghe's visit is an ambitious mission to transform India-Sri Lanka relations in areas which are tied by a common agenda for accelerated development. This push for economic engagement is signalled by Colombo's decision to lease the oil tanks at Trincomalee port to Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), which will also gain openings to sell auto fuels in Sri Lanka's hitherto closed market.
This is a politically risky decision but rationalised by the need to have a reliable source of oil after ending the state monopoly on oil distribution. It will also reduce the burden on Colombo in a situation where the currency fluctuates under the pressure of oil prices. Lastly, it reflects the commitment to develop Trincomalee as an economic and commercial base, rather than a military one. That the LTTE concurs with this makes the development all the more significant.
Mr Wickremesinghe's economic diplomacy outlines a more enduring framework of bilateral relations that New Delhi would be well advised to pursue. His efforts to formalise an engagement making India and Sri Lanka stakeholders in each other's economy could lead to similar efforts between New Delhi and its other neighbours. Colombo has sought more investment from India, and is urging New Delhi to respond to a range of proposals including more air links and ferry services between Colombo and Tuticorin.
Given that increasingly economics is the determinant in international relations, this is a refreshing approach in the South Asian context. In contrast to the Tamil-Sinhala conflict and the peace process — where the People's Alliance of president Chandrika Kumaratunga and Mr Wickremesinghe's government are at loggerheads — India-Sri Lanka economic cooperation enjoys cross-party political support in Colombo. This is an advantage New Delhi must seize to realise prime minister Vajpayee's call to SAARC members to "grow rich together”.
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