Chinese navy ships may now choose to dock in Pakistan's Gwadar port, which has now come under the control of a Chinese firm, as the Sri Lankan government may deny permission for Chinese vessels to dock in Colombo, reports the Press Trust of India.
“The Gwadar port will also guarantee China’s naval ships’ maintenance and supply in the Indian Ocean,” said Zhao Gancheng, director of South Asia Studies at Shanghai Institute for International Studies in the state-run Global Times. “The move is widely seen as crucial for China, especially as it is unlikely that Sri Lanka will open its ports to Chinese naval ships,” he added.
The reports come after controversy following the docking of Chinese submarines in Colombo last year. China defended the move, but Sri Lanka’s foreign minister Mangala Samaraweera said that the docking caused “serious suspicion”.
Sri Lanka has also been reviewing a decision to press ahead with the Chinese funded ‘Port City’ project in Colombo, alongside 35 other Chinese investment projects, straining relations between the two countries.
See our earlier posts:
Sri Lanka to review Chinese investment projects approved by previous government (03 Apr 2015)
China defends loans to Sri Lanka and docking of submarines in Colombo (04 Mar 2015)
Chinese submarines causes 'serious suspicion' says Sri Lankan minister (20 Feb 2015)
China defends decision to dock submarines in Sri Lanka (03 Nov 2014)