After Doklam, another beef in Sri Lanka

As the border standoff in Doklam continues to simmer, Sri Lanka, a country with a centuries-old cultural bond with India and a robust financial connection with China, just threw another log on the fire of China-India competition by letting India operate an airport on the southern tip of its island, near the Chinese Belt and Road outpost.

Sri Lanka, according to the country’s civil aviation minister, Nimal Siripala, reached out to both India and China in search of investment in the Hambantota area, where China has built a seaport with a 99-year lease and was planning to construct an investment zone and a refinery. But after China failed to reach an agreement with Sri Lanka, India came up with a proposal to set up a joint venture with Sri Lanka.

China’s investments projects have met with widespread opposition from the locals. They have staged numerous protests in the face of eviction. Other critics questioned the local government for signing up loss-making projects with China that push the country deeper into long-term indebtedness.

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