Sri Lanka seeks to restructure Chinese debt amid crisis | Health
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, poses for the media ahead of his meeting with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, January 9, 2022.
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, left, and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrive at the China-funded Sea Salvage Project in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, Jan.9, 2022.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, center, watches the signing and exchange of bilateral agreements between officials of the two countries in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, Jan.9, 2022.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, center, and Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Gamini Lakshman Peiris attend the signing of agreements in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday January 9, 2022.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, second from left, attends a bilateral meeting with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, right, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday January 9, 2022.
Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, right, presents a souvenir to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi ahead of their meeting in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, January 9, 2022.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, poses for the media ahead of his meeting with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, January 9, 2022.
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, left, and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, center, inspect the China-funded sea salvage project in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, January 9, 2022.
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, left, and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrive at the China-funded Sea Salvage Project in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, Jan.9, 2022.
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, left, and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, center, inspect the China-funded sea salvage project in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, January 9, 2022.
A Chinese national living in Sri Lanka photographs the surroundings of the China-funded Sea Salvage Project at a ceremony to mark Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, January 9 2022.
Chinese and Sri Lankan national flags are erected on the China-funded Sea Salvage Project during Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, January 9, 2022.
By KRISHAN FRANCIS – Associated Press
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) – The debt-ridden president of Sri Lanka on Sunday called on China to restructure its loans and access preferential credits for imports of essential goods, as the island nation debate in the throes of its worst economic crisis, in part because of Beijing-funded projects that don’t generate revenue.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi that it would be “a great relief for the country if attention could be paid to restructuring debt repayments as a solution to the economic crisis that has arisen in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. “, According to a press release from his office.
Rajapaksa asked Wang for a concessional credit facility for imports so that industries can operate without interruption, the statement said. He also asked for help to allow Chinese tourists to travel to Sri Lanka in a secure bubble.
Wang and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, brother of the president, then visited the port city of Colombo, a reclaimed island developed with Chinese investment, where they opened a promenade and inaugurated the navigation of 65 boats to commemorate 65 years of relations. diplomatic relations between the two countries.
In his address to the port city, Wang said a persistent and uncontrolled pandemic has made economic recovery difficult, and the two countries must use the anniversary of diplomatic ties to work more closely.