A spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that when commenting on the arrival of the Yuan Wang 5 ship to Sri Lanka, it would ask all parties to look at the scientific studies on board fairly. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said that under normal circumstances, the ban on exchanges between China and Sri Lanka should be stopped.
Angered by Sri Lanka's request to stop a hi-tech Chinese research ship bound for Hambantota port, China today slammed India. China said it was pointless to pressurize Colombo citing security reasons.
Sri Lanka has asked Beijing to postpone the arrival of the Chinese space and satellite observation research vessel 'Yuan Wang 5', which was scheduled to dock at Hambantota port from August 11 to 17.
Responding to the request, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said it was pointless for Beijing to pressurize Sri Lanka citing security issues.
The sovereignty of Sri Lanka
"Sri Lanka is a sovereign country. It can develop relations with other countries for its own development interests," he said.
He also pointed out that China and Sri Lanka freely choose common issues between their two countries without targeting third countries.
Wang said that China urges relevant parties to view Chinese scientific research in a fair and prudent manner and to stop disrupting the normal exchange between China and Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka is a transit hub in the Indian Ocean. Wang Wenbin said China always has the freedom to carry out its scientific research activities at sea and fully respects the sovereignty of other countries.
