Colombo, Sept. 5 (Daily Mirror) – Sri Lanka’s non-participation in the recently concluded Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit held in China could be a mistake as it will damage its image as a nation with a non-aligned foreign policy in addition to denial of economic benefits, an opposition MP said today.
“It has been reported that connectivity, trade facilitation, and technology transfer have been the main topics of discussion at this year’s summit. Sri Lanka might have missed the opportunity of gaining some benefits under such a scenario,” main opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Mujibur Rahman told journalists.
Also he said Sri Lanka would have damaged its global image as a country with a non-aligned foreign policy.
“Past governments in Sri Lanka have maintained a non-aligned foreign policy, but the policy of the present government might be questioned by the international community as there is a possibility of the country being labelled as a pro-Western nation,” the MP said.
He raised concerns whether the government came under pressure from the U.S. government to avoid participation in the SCO summit.
Additionally, the MP suggested that the government should have followed Pakistan’s example and participated in the summit, despite the lower export tariff rate set by the U.S. compared to Sri Lanka.
Furthermore, the SJB MP said that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake should not have taken Indian actor-turned-politician C. Joseph Vijay, who recently reignited the row over Katchatheevu Island, seriously. “We saw the President making a sudden trip to Katchatheevu and declaring that it will be under Sri Lanka permanently. Vijay has come into politics a very short time ago. He has just entered the fray and is running for the Chief Minister’s post in Tamil Nadu. It is not clear whether he would become the Chief Minister. Therefore, why should the President get alarmed by his demand to return the Northern Island to India?” the MP asked.
Also, he recalled that the Indian government has not taken any steps towards demanding Katchatheevu despite calls made by past Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu.
One Comment