East Container Terminal at Colombo Port – Burning Issues – Free PDF Download

MAY 2019

•  Sri Lanka, Japan and India signed an agreement to jointly develop the East Container Terminal at the Colombo Port.
• The joint initiative is estimated to cost between $500 million and $700 million, a senior official of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Southern Development said.

JAISHANKAR ENSURED INDIAN ROLE

• Rajapaksa’s retreat came on the heels of a visit earlier this month by Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to India’s smaller southern neighbor, where he laid down unequivocal terms for Indian-backed development of a container jetty in the port.

RAJAPAKSA ASSURED PROTESTORS

•  A week after his visit, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa told agitating Port worker unions that the Adani Group would invest in the terminal, and that the Terminal would not be “sold or leased” to any foreign entity.
• The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) was to hold 51 % stake in the operations, while India and Japan together would hold 49 %, as per the MOC.

FEB 2021

• Sri Lanka has decided to develop the strategic East Container Terminal (ECT) at the Colombo Port on its own.
•  The Sri Lankan government would instead offer the West Container Terminal to India for possible investments.

FEB 2021

•  The decision was taken at Monday’s (01-Feb) Cabinet meeting helmed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, when members “unanimously” agreed to proposals submitted by the Minister of Ports and Shipping.

WHY DID SRI LANKA RENEGE?

•  It comes amid mounting pressure from Port union workers against any foreign role or investment in the ECT project, where nearly 70% of the transhipment business is linked to India.

 INDIA’S REACTION

• A senior Indian source said: “We would hope that Sri Lanka does not unilaterally decide on this matter, as there is a tripartite agreement on it.”

• The remarks prompted a media statement from the Indian High Commission for the first time since the controversy heightened.
• A spokesman of the Indian mission on Monday reiterated “the expectation of the Government of India for expeditious implementation” of the trilateral MOC signed among Sri Lanka , India and Japan in May 2019, for the development of ECT with participation from the three countries.
• “The commitment of the Government of Sri Lanka in this regard has been conveyed several times in the recent past, including at the leadership level…all sides should continue to abide by the existing understandings and commitment,” the statement had said, hours before the Cabinet decided otherwise.

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