Don't Want To Get 'Sandwiched' Between India And China: Sri Lanka President Dissanayake

Sri Lanka President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has been sworn in and has already taken charge of his office as the head of the South Asian island nation. The recently concluded elections have catapulted the Marxist leader, a relative unknown on the global stage, to a place in political limelight. With this, focus is squarely on Dissanayake and what he has done before. A comment made by Dissanayake made just weeks before elections has surfaced now. Something that may foreshadow the way he might steer Sri Lanka's foreign policy .

"We don’t want to be sandwiched, especially between China and India. Both countries are valued friends and, under an NPP (National People's Power) government, we expect them to become close partners," Dissanayake said in an interview to The Monocle.

"We also want to maintain relations with the EU, the Middle East and Africa," he added.

The interview was conducted on September 3.

Dissanayake is the leader of Marxist Janatha Vimukti Perumana party-led National People's Party (NPP). In recently concluded parliamentary elections, he defeated Sajith Premadasa of Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB). Premadasa was his closest rival.

All eyes are on Dissanayake to see how he balances Sri Lanka's relations with India and China, the two Asian giants.

India has had a prominent presence in South Asian affairs traditionally but China is increasingly making forays in the waters of the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka, though a small nation, sits close to major international shipping lanes, some of which are crucial to China for an uninterrupted oil supply to its economy. China has invested heavily in Sri Lanka and a huge portion of Sri Lanka's external debt is owed to China.

But if China has deeper pockets, India has the undisputed advantage of geographical proximity to Sri Lanka. India has almost always been the first nation to respond in case of natural, political or even economical disasters in Sri Lanka and though it has conceded ground to Chinese influence, millenia-spanning deep cultural, social ties between India and Sri Lanka makes it harder to dislodge Indian position in affairs of South Asia.