{"id":70869,"date":"2020-11-06T21:11:19","date_gmt":"2020-11-07T02:11:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=70869"},"modified":"2020-11-06T21:11:19","modified_gmt":"2020-11-07T02:11:19","slug":"dissonance-in-language-used-by-the-two-sides-about-president-rajapaksas-meeting-with-mike-pompeo-has-led-to-questions-as-to-what-really-transpired-in-the-meetings-and-whether-any-understandings-wer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=70869","title":{"rendered":"Dissonance in language used by the two sides About President Rajapaksa’s Meeting With Mike Pompeo has led to questions as to what really transpired in the meetings and whether any understandings were reached."},"content":{"rendered":"

By<\/p>\n

Lasanda Kurukulasuriya<\/strong><\/p>\n

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo\u2019s whirlwind visit last week has left in its trail many unanswered questions. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s clear that for the US, this trip was all about signing up allies in its all-but-declared war against China, under the rubric of what it calls a \u2018free and open Indo Pacific.\u2019 <\/p>\n

The messages coming across from the two governments revealed a certain disconnect. Concluding his visit Pompeo tweeted that his meetings with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunewardena \u201creaffirmed Sri Lanka\u2019s pivotal role as an Indo Pacific partner.\u201d But there is nothing endorsing this assertion from the government. President Rajapaksa tweeted that he appreciated Pompeo\u2019s stance on \u201cthe need to strengthen the bilateral relationship and support for defence cooperation\u201d and valued Pompeo\u2019s views \u201con assistance for investment and our development needs.\u201d <\/p>\n

Pompeo engaged in China-bashing at every turn, calling the Chinese Communist Party a \u2018predator\u2019 and accusing it of bringing \u201cbad deals, violations of sovereignty and lawlessness on land and sea.\u201d The United States \u201ccomes in a different way \u2026 as a friend and as a partner\u201d he said, according to a US embassy transcript of a joint media briefing. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

So is this the \u2018difficult but necessary decision\u2019 that a senior US official, ahead of Pompeo\u2019s travel, urged Sri Lanka to make? To choose between the \u2018good guys\u2019 and the \u2018bad guys?\u2019 Many developing countries view Chinese money as a lifeline in difficult economic times. It\u2019s known that Beijing does not interfere in the internal affairs of host countries, as a pre-condition for its loans and grants. The US on the other hand has a long history of meddling in other people\u2019s elections, staging CIA-backed coups and propping up US-friendly dictatorships. <\/p>\n

Not surprisingly, Pompeo\u2019s bid to vilify China gained no traction in Sri Lanka. This was partly reflected in questions from the media: Is the US seeking to get MCC and SOFA agreements signed in its bid to counter Chinese influence? What if Sri Lanka does not comply? Why did he visit, just before a US election? What is the status of the US travel ban imposed on Army Commander Shavendra Silva? <\/p>\n

In his talks with Pompeo, President Rajapaksa himself referred to China\u2019s assistance with post-war infrastructure development, saying categorically that Sri Lanka was \u201cnot caught in a debt trap as a result.\u201d <\/p>\n

According to the President\u2019s Media Division (PMD) \u201cthe President stressed that he is not ready to compromise the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the nation in maintaining foreign relations whatever the circumstances may be.\u201d Minister Gunewardena said that Sri Lanka\u2019s foreign policy \u201cwill remain neutral, non-aligned and friendly.\u201d He referred to \u201cthe importance of maintaining the freedom of navigation in our seas and airspace,\u201d but avoided the terminology of \u2018free and open Indo Pacfic.\u2019 <\/p>\n

The dissonance in language used by the two sides has led to questions in some quarters as to what really transpired in the meetings, and whether any understandings were reached. A US State Department readout referred to US commitment to \u2018advancing shared interests in a free and open Indo Pacific region.\u2019 What are these \u2018shared interests?\u2019 What exactly is the \u2018defence cooperation\u2019 that the \u2018two sides agreed to strengthen,\u2019 as mentioned by the PMD? In the absence of a joint statement, the remarks on either side will assume importance, as they come against the backdrop of an ongoing US exercise to win partners for a broad anti-China alliance in the Asia Pacific and Indian Ocean regions. <\/p>\n

Purpose of visit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Many, including influential sections of the Buddhist clergy have demanded to know the purpose of former CIA Director Pompeo\u2019s visit at this particular moment in time. Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara grumbled that inquiries from the foreign ministry had not yielded a satisfactory response, publicly saying \u201cEven we don\u2019t know why he came.\u201d <\/p>\n

An answer to this question came from Sri Lanka\u2019s former ambassador to the UN Tamara Kunanayakam during \u2018Newsline\u2019 TV programme of 27.10.20 – the day Pompeo arrived. \u201cAt the moment, the primary focus of US strategy is war against China. That\u2019s why the US Secretary of State Pompeo is coming here\u201d she said. That is the new China policy announced in July she added. \u201cWe are talking about regime change\u201d (meaning, the overthrow of the Chinese Communist Party). <\/p>\n

Asked by Derana TV what will happen if Sri Lanka finds it \u2018politically challenging\u2019 to sign the MCC pact, Pompeo said \u201cIf it doesn\u2019t make sense for Sri Lanka, the Sri Lankans will choose not to accept that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kunanayakam in her forthright remarks revealed some lesser known aspects of the MCC agreement, that might possibly explain Pompeo\u2019s seeming indifference to possible rejection of the MCC. \u201cWhat\u2019s unique about MCC aid is that the conditions have to be implemented before you get the money, the money is only a reward for re-structuring the State\u201d she said.\u201cIts not development aid money. \u2026 it is a package that comes with ACSA and SOFA.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s relevant to mention here the State Land (Special Provisions) Bill, the provisions of which were in the nature of a pre-condition for the MCC grant. The Bill was brought by the previous yahapalana government and later withdrawn after it was challenged in the Supreme Court. <\/p>\n

Peace talk<\/strong><\/p>\n

Pompeo, in talks with the President, said \u201cThe United States wishes to see that the Indian Ocean remains a zone of peace,\u201d according to the PMD. The remark is puzzling, seeing that he arrived fresh from talks in New Delhi where Washington had just concluded a landmark defence agreement. The BECA (Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement) is the final \u2018foundational\u2019 defence agreement the US has with India. According to Indian media \u201cIt will allow India to gain access to precision data and topographical images\u201d from US military satellites.<\/p>\n

This data will \u201callow India to keep a close watch on the movements of Chinese warships in the Indian Ocean\u201d said NDTV. Pompeo\u2019s visit also comes ahead of the Malabar naval exercise in November where the US will flex its military muscle in the Bay of Bengal alongside Quad members India, Japan and Australia.
\nHow could these actions, that signal increasing militarisation of the Indian Ocean, advance the Zone of Peace concept? Rather, they seem to indicate that having supported a massive military build-up in the Asia Pacific, the US is now doing the same in the Indian Ocean.<\/p>\n

We need to take note that Pompeo, like American interlocutors before him, did not forget to mention that the US expects Sri Lanka to \u2018fulfill its pledges\u2019 in relation to \u2018accountability, justice, and reconciliation.\u2019 Human rights was weaponised by the US through a 2015 resolution against Sri Lanka at the UNHRC, and the message here is that this weapon has not been laid down. <\/p>\n

Courtesy:Daily Mirror<\/em><\/p>\n

Tweet<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Lasanda Kurukulasuriya US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo\u2019s whirlwind visit last week has left in its trail many unanswered questions. It\u2019s clear that for the US, this trip was all about signing up allies in its all-but-declared war against China, under the rubric of what it calls a \u2018free and open Indo Pacific.\u2019 The …<\/p>\n

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