The Hindu : Will Delhi measure up to Colombo's hopes?

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jun 10, 2002

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Will Delhi measure up to Colombo's hopes?

By C. Raja Mohan

NEW DELHI June 9. As the Sri Lankan Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, arrives here for consultations with the Indian leaders, there is a danger that the Government might not measure up to the new vision in Colombo for a transformation of bilateral relations, diplomatic observers here say.

At the heart of the fresh approach that Mr. Wickremesinghe brings to ties with New Delhi is an agenda for an accelerated economic integration between the two countries. But is India ready? Besides briefing the Indian Government on Colombo's efforts to end the tragic civil war with the Tamil minority, he would be looking for immediate action from New Delhi that could radically restructure economic relations between the two nations.

Mr. Wickremesinghe, who has made bold to push the peace process in Sri Lanka, will also communicate to the Indian political establishment his conviction that the future growth of the island nation is tied to the Indian economy.

Unlike the other neighbours of India, who are either reluctant or embarrassed about pursuing their own `enlightened self-interest' through cooperation with New Delhi, Sri Lanka is pushing for economic engagement with India through unilateral action wherever it can.

He has taken the domestically risky political decision to lease the oil tanks at the Trincomalee port to Indian Oil Corporation. He wants India and Sri Lanka to fully develop the commercial potential of the strategic port. India has promised to respond within a month to a full range of economic proposals, including greater access to ports, more air links, and facilitation of bilateral trade in services. But will the Indian response be positive?

The Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, diplomatic observers here say, must impress upon the commerce and finance ministries, notorious for their tunnel vision, about the strategic imperative of rapid economic integration with Sri Lanka. Otherwise minor procedural issues will hold back the unprecedented opportunity to reorder ties, they add. If Mr. Vajpayee endorses Mr. Wickremesinghe's vision of Indo-Sri Lankan relations, it could set the tone for similar arrangements in future between New Delhi and its other neighbours, they say.

During his two-day working visit to the capital, the Sri Lankan Prime Minister will meet the entire spectrum of the Indian leadership, including Mr. Vajpayee, and his key Cabinet colleagues as well as the President, K.R. Narayanan.

Colombo also hopes the tricky legal issues relating to the leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, V. Prabakaran, who is wanted in Indian courts in connection with the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, will be sorted out. The subject will naturally come up in Mr. Wickremesinghe's talks with the leader of the Opposition, Sonia Gandhi, whose cooperation would be crucial.

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