India ready for maritime surveys in Sri Lanka, a countermeasure to China’s?

By Kelum Bandara  

Against the backdrop of China’s foray into the Indian Ocean for research, India also remains ready to tie up with Sri Lanka to undertake hydrographic surveys, Daily Mirror learns.  
During the recent visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the two sides exchanged a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for defence cooperation in areas such as joint military exercises, capacity building and training and port calls by naval units.  
The MoU will cover maritime research activities. It can be interpreted as a countermeasure to China’s active engagement in maritime research work. India has vehemently opposed such work involving Chinese research vessels, citing security concerns. The former government, led by Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe even introduced a moratorium on foreign research vessels, a step meant to allay Indian concerns.  
The one-year moratorium lapsed at the end of last year, and Sri Lanka did not extend it under the current government.  
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake reassured that Sri Lankan territory would not be allowed to be used against the interests of India in any manner.  
The Indian side also stressed that the security of both sides are interlinked.  
In addition, the current joint exercises involving both the Armies and Navies, the two countries are now planning for similar activities between the Air Forces.