-By Chinese Ambassador in Sri Lanka H.E. Qi Zhenhong
(Lanka-e-News -27.April.2025, 11.00 PM) Sri Lanka’s economy is forecast to grow by 3.5% this year, according to the World Bank’s latest report, holding steady against the backdrop of significant global challenges. Yet, mounting pressure from high U.S. tariffs and stubbornly high poverty rates casts a long shadow over Colombo’s cautious optimism. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has pledged measures to shield Sri Lanka’s fragile economy from external shocks, underlining the government’s ambition to build a resilient economy immune to the vicissitudes of global trade turbulence.
However, the path ahead is fraught with difficulty. Disparities in global economic development mean that Washington’s tariff policies disproportionately burden less developed nations. For Sri Lanka, the impact is severe. The garment industry — the nation’s second-largest source of foreign exchange — faces plummeting orders, with export revenues predicted to fall by as much as 20%, threatening tens of thousands of jobs. Already, New Year bonuses for workers have been scrapped, sparking unrest and factory closures. Other key exports, from rubber and tea to gems, are also vulnerable, with knock-on effects including rupee depreciation, rising inflation, and pressure on foreign debt repayments.
At the heart of the matter lies Washington’s increasingly aggressive trade posture. Cloaked in rhetoric about "fairness" and "reciprocity," the United States has weaponised tariffs to advance its economic interests, destabilising the multilateral trading system and widening inequalities. While ostensibly protecting domestic industries, this strategy undermines global recovery efforts and politicises trade at a time when coordinated action is sorely needed.
History offers sobering lessons. In the early 1950s, newly independent Ceylon (as Sri Lanka was then known) suffered economic hardship when the U.S. weaponised trade to curb its dealings with China. Yet, in defiance of pressure, Colombo and Beijing forged the historic Rubber-Rice Pact, a bold assertion of sovereignty that set the tone for a resilient bilateral friendship.
Today, faced with fresh American protectionism, China again positions itself as a bulwark for the developing world. “We do not seek conflict, but we are not afraid of it,” Beijing has declared. “We will fight if fight we must.” For China, resistance to U.S. hegemony is not mere defiance but a calculated defence of multilateralism and economic justice — a stance that resonates with nations like Sri Lanka that feel marginalised by the shifting global order.
China’s track record bears scrutiny. It has contributed approximately 30% to global economic growth in recent years and remains a staunch advocate for open trade and multilateral cooperation. Unlike Washington’s capricious tariff policies, Beijing’s approach is framed as one of partnership and shared development. Projects such as the Colombo Port City and Hambantota Port — controversial as they may be in some circles — have undeniably transformed Sri Lanka’s infrastructure and boosted its investment climate.
President Dissanayake’s visit to China earlier this year — his first foreign trip since taking office — underscored the strategic importance of this relationship. In Beijing, he and President Xi Jinping committed to a deepened partnership, signing a raft of agreements spanning trade, agriculture, media, and climate change. In a joint statement, the two leaders pledged to build a "community of shared destiny," further entwining their nations’ futures at a time of mounting global uncertainty.
China’s readiness to support Sri Lanka against the headwinds of global trade wars is not just a matter of sentiment; it reflects a broader geopolitical shift. South-South cooperation, once a catchphrase, is becoming a cornerstone of a new economic architecture in which developing nations seek solidarity beyond traditional Western-dominated structures.
None of this is to romanticise China’s role. Concerns about debt dependency and sovereignty are real and warrant vigilance. Yet, at a time when the United States appears increasingly willing to sacrifice smaller nations on the altar of domestic politics, Sri Lanka may find in Beijing a more stable — and perhaps more trustworthy — partner.
Justice, as the old saying goes, bends towards the arc of fairness. In the emerging global landscape, alliances grounded in mutual respect and pragmatic cooperation are likely to outlast those shaped by coercion and hegemony.
Sri Lanka, standing at a geopolitical crossroads, must chart its path carefully. Strengthening ties with China — without closing the door on broader international engagement — may offer Colombo its best chance not only at survival but at genuine prosperity in a world growing ever more unpredictable.
-By Chinese Ambassador in Sri Lanka H.E. Qi Zhenhong
---------------------------
by (2025-04-27 17:39:35)
Read 11142 Times
Leave a Reply
0 discussion on this news