It has been reported that the South Asian country Sri Lanka will temporarily stop Chinese research vessels from anchoring in its ports and operating within its exclusive economic zone in order to respond to India’s security concerns.
According to the news of Hindustan Times, based on diplomatic sources, the Sri Lankan government informed the Indian authorities that it will impose a 1-year moratorium on Chinese research ships.
The Colombo administration has been facing warnings from the United States and its coastal neighbor India for some time due to the activities of Chinese research and intelligence ships in the Indian Ocean.
While there is no statement yet from Sri Lanka or China regarding the ban, it is predicted that the moratorium may lead to the cancellation of the research expedition of China’s ocean research ship “Xiang Yang Hon 3”, which is planned to carry out in the south of the Indian Ocean in January-May.
The Indian administration has previously expressed security concerns about China operating in the Indian Ocean with ships equipped with ocean research, scanning, mapping and radar equipment.
In his meeting with Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe on July 21, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanded that his country’s “strategic and security concerns be respected.”
The New Delhi administration objected to the Chinese research ship “Shi Yan 6” conducting a joint marine research expedition with Sri Lanka in October and November last year.
Indian sources note that China has assigned 48 research ships in the region since 2019, and in 2023, 25 ships, including warships and submarines, as well as marine vessels carrying missile tracking and research equipment, will operate in the Indian Ocean region.
The opinions expressed herein are the author’s and not necessarily those of News2Sea.
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