Daily Analysis of 'The Hindu' - 12th February, 2020 | Additional Study Material for UPSC PDF Download

 Page 1


First call
?By making New Delhi their first stop abroad.
?President Gotabaya Rajapaksa visited in November 2019
?Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in February 2020
?Contrary to their last stint which ended in 2015, ties
underwent a strain for several reasons.
?New Delhi would like to make a fresh start
?Joint India-Japan proposal for the East Container Terminal
at Colombo
?$400-million Line of Credit
? India ’ s further assistance for nationwide housing
?Air connectivity to Sri Lan ka ’ s north and east is already
being improved
Page 2


First call
?By making New Delhi their first stop abroad.
?President Gotabaya Rajapaksa visited in November 2019
?Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in February 2020
?Contrary to their last stint which ended in 2015, ties
underwent a strain for several reasons.
?New Delhi would like to make a fresh start
?Joint India-Japan proposal for the East Container Terminal
at Colombo
?$400-million Line of Credit
? India ’ s further assistance for nationwide housing
?Air connectivity to Sri Lan ka ’ s north and east is already
being improved
Page 3


First call
?By making New Delhi their first stop abroad.
?President Gotabaya Rajapaksa visited in November 2019
?Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in February 2020
?Contrary to their last stint which ended in 2015, ties
underwent a strain for several reasons.
?New Delhi would like to make a fresh start
?Joint India-Japan proposal for the East Container Terminal
at Colombo
?$400-million Line of Credit
? India ’ s further assistance for nationwide housing
?Air connectivity to Sri Lan ka ’ s north and east is already
being improved
?On security: Mr. Rajapaksa and Prime Minister
Narendra Modi discussed intelligence sharing,
training and the utilisation of a special $50-
million Line of Credit extended by India after last
year ’ s Easter Sunday bombings.
?India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives are expected to
revive their trilateral on security, including joint
maritime security talks and anti-terror
cooperation.
?Finally, Mr. Rajapaksa reaffirmed his belief that
among Sri Lank a’ s friendships, India is seen as a
“relative ”, given their history and culture.
Page 4


First call
?By making New Delhi their first stop abroad.
?President Gotabaya Rajapaksa visited in November 2019
?Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in February 2020
?Contrary to their last stint which ended in 2015, ties
underwent a strain for several reasons.
?New Delhi would like to make a fresh start
?Joint India-Japan proposal for the East Container Terminal
at Colombo
?$400-million Line of Credit
? India ’ s further assistance for nationwide housing
?Air connectivity to Sri Lan ka ’ s north and east is already
being improved
?On security: Mr. Rajapaksa and Prime Minister
Narendra Modi discussed intelligence sharing,
training and the utilisation of a special $50-
million Line of Credit extended by India after last
year ’ s Easter Sunday bombings.
?India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives are expected to
revive their trilateral on security, including joint
maritime security talks and anti-terror
cooperation.
?Finally, Mr. Rajapaksa reaffirmed his belief that
among Sri Lank a’ s friendships, India is seen as a
“relative ”, given their history and culture.
?Prime Minister Modi said India hopes that the
“expectations of the Tamil people for equality,
justice, peace, and respect ” would be realised
and that devolution of powers according to the
13th amendment would be taken forward.
? India’ s case for the special status for the North
and East also comes across as contrary to the Modi
governm e nt’ s strong stand about removal of the
special status for Jammu and Kashmir.
?Mr. Rajapaksa has ruled out taking forward the
MoU signed by his predecessor Ranil
Wickremesinghe allowing Indian participation in
energy and infrastructure projects in Trincomalee;
an Indian stake in “Mattala airport ” is not on the
cards either.
Page 5


First call
?By making New Delhi their first stop abroad.
?President Gotabaya Rajapaksa visited in November 2019
?Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in February 2020
?Contrary to their last stint which ended in 2015, ties
underwent a strain for several reasons.
?New Delhi would like to make a fresh start
?Joint India-Japan proposal for the East Container Terminal
at Colombo
?$400-million Line of Credit
? India ’ s further assistance for nationwide housing
?Air connectivity to Sri Lan ka ’ s north and east is already
being improved
?On security: Mr. Rajapaksa and Prime Minister
Narendra Modi discussed intelligence sharing,
training and the utilisation of a special $50-
million Line of Credit extended by India after last
year ’ s Easter Sunday bombings.
?India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives are expected to
revive their trilateral on security, including joint
maritime security talks and anti-terror
cooperation.
?Finally, Mr. Rajapaksa reaffirmed his belief that
among Sri Lank a’ s friendships, India is seen as a
“relative ”, given their history and culture.
?Prime Minister Modi said India hopes that the
“expectations of the Tamil people for equality,
justice, peace, and respect ” would be realised
and that devolution of powers according to the
13th amendment would be taken forward.
? India’ s case for the special status for the North
and East also comes across as contrary to the Modi
governm e nt’ s strong stand about removal of the
special status for Jammu and Kashmir.
?Mr. Rajapaksa has ruled out taking forward the
MoU signed by his predecessor Ranil
Wickremesinghe allowing Indian participation in
energy and infrastructure projects in Trincomalee;
an Indian stake in “Mattala airport ” is not on the
cards either.
?However, of note is his appeal for India to help Sri
Lanka deal with its debt crisis — nearly $60-billion
outstanding in foreign and domestic, and about
$5-billion a year in repayments.
?New Delhi must consider his request for a three-
year moratorium and be upfront about its
response, in contrast to the past when New Delhi
did not take up an offer to develop Hambantota
port, and ceded space to China.
?Ignoring or rebuffing the new request could
damage bilateral ties far more.