Nearly a month has passed since a new Government took over the helm in Sri Lanka, with much promise of change and progress. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is trying to sail the ship without much change before the upcoming Parliamentary/General Election where the National People’s Power (NPP) feel confident they can get the numbers to form a government. As such, at present Dissanayake’s focus seems to be inward looking and with satisfying the masses desire to punish corruption and the political culture which many have come to detest. Sri Lanka’s leadership must understand that it must ‘win’ both the local and international audience, if the island nation is to succeed.

However, Dissanayake et al. at NPP HQ, and more so at Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) HQ should not lull themselves into the thinking that fixing internal issues alone will help Sri Lanka progress. What many Sri Lankans fail to grasp is that Sri Lanka, whether we like it or not, is a strategically important littoral nation, and that survival in the international arena is as important to us as getting our house in order. It is indeed sad that many Sri Lankan policymakers, officials and public don’t realise the importance of diplomacy and our foreign policy, even after weathering Covid-19 pandemic and an economic crisis, which were still recovering from.

For small States like ours, diplomacy and sound communications of our intentions are vital to avoid cost misunderstandings. This is especially true since our island nation has not got back on its feet, economically speaking. Sri Lanka must complete its debt restructuring process, earn international confidence through reform, recognition through better ratings and endorsements, if we are to return to stability and chase growth.

It is becoming evident that the NPP caretaker Government has not given the attention and priority it should for Sri Lanka’s foreign policy. And that may come back to bite the island nation later on, or perhaps it already is. It is surprising that President Dissanayake has not yet visited the capitals where Sri Lanka has long standing key relationships. It is baffling why Dissanayake did not pay a visit to New Delhi, who at present is vital for the island’s economic recovery. Dissanayake had no issue calling on New Delhi before the election, making an about turn on the JVP’s long-held anti-India stance. NPP distancing itself from JVP’s legacy foreign policy stances, played a key role in winning international confidence and gaining broader support from the voter base in Sri Lanka. Not, calling on Sri Lanka’s closest neighbour, is likely one of the first foreign policy shortcomings of the new administration. India has been watching the new administration closely, with some quarters of New Delhi concerned that if the NPP will form a strong government, post-Parliamentary Election, they may sink Sri Lanka back into the China orbit. Such concerns need to be addressed soon, and is done best with a personal touch. The frequency of shuttle diplomacy between New Delhi and Colombo over the last few years should have been an indicator that the relationship is built and progressed on personal interaction at the highest echelons of both States.  

Another missed opportunity was Colombo failing to dispatch one of the three members of Government to at least make a brief visit, a kind of ‘show the flag’ exercise to acknowledge the importance Sri Lanka places in going the collective. Like India, Russia has been a long-standing friend to Sri Lanka in general and particularly at the United Nations. While Sri Lanka’s have been watching with much disgust and anguish at the carnage that is happening in Palestine and now Lebanon, the recent decision become a signatory to a letter signed by 105 countries condemning Israel for banning UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres from entering Israel, was a clear and loud departure from the islands’ established foreign policy practice. Yes, Sri Lanka has long been a friend of Palestine, and while we call out the moral decay of the collective West, and the blatant hypocrisy of the Western capitals which routinely censure Colombo over its long and dark human rights track record, Sri Lanka had over decades, opted to ‘sit out’ collective action against Israel. How this sudden departure from practice will impact Sri Lanka remains to be seen.

The way Sri Lanka has used, or not used diplomacy in the last month under the new regime underscores that the NPP Government is lacking in sound foreign policy advice. If left unchecked, and if not remedied, Sri Lanka could end up paying a heavy price, for making ill-advised moves, or not moving at all in the international arena.