Russia is expanding footprints in Asia with Sri Lankan president urging Putin to help import fuel
Russia is expanding its footprints in Asia with cash-strapped Sri Lanka being the latest nation to look upto Russian fuel for meeting-up its energy demands.
While the European Union (E.U.) has already announced to reduce dependence on Russian fuel, China and India have increased their fuel imports from Russia.
The President of Sri Lanka – Gotabaya Rajapaksa had a telephonic conversation with the President of Russia – Vladimir Putin where he urged Putin to help Sri Lanka, which is facing its worst ever economic crisis.
Taking it to twitter, Rajapaksa tweeted,
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— Gotabaya Rajapaksa (@GotabayaR) July 6, 2022
Had a very productive telecon with the #Russia President, Vladimir Putin. While thanking him for all the support extended by his gvt to overcome the challenges of the past, I requested an offer of credit support to import fuel to #lka in defeating the current econ challenges.
The Government of Sri Lanka had already warned that the nation could soon run out of petrol. Rajapaksa requested Putin an offer of credit support to import fuel. Last week, authorities suspended sales of petrol and diesel for non-essential vehicles in an attempt to preserve its dwindling fuel stocks. He also asked Putin to resume flights between Moscow and Colombo, after the Russian flag carrier Aeroflot suspended services last month.
Rajapaksa further tweeted,
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— Gotabaya Rajapaksa (@GotabayaR) July 6, 2022
Further, I humbly made A request to restart @Aeroflot_World operations in #lka. We unanimously agreed that strengthening bilateral relations in sectors such as tourism, trade & culture was paramount in reinforcing the friendship our two nations share.
Sri Lanka is in desperate need of Russian bail-out for both fuel and tourists, which are both vital to rescuing the country’s economy. It is struggling to get oil shipments from its usual suppliers in the Gulf or elsewhere due to a lack of foreign currency as well as banking and logistical difficulties. While the West has imposed sanctions on Russian oil in response to its invasion of Ukraine, Sri Lanka is willing to take the risk of upsetting the West.
The Central Bank of Sri Lanka has raised its key interest rates by 1% to tackle the soaring cost of living. The lending rate was raised to 15.5% and the deposit rate was increased to 14.5%, the highest in 21 years. It comes as annual inflation hit a record high of 54.6% in June 2022 as the cost of food rose by more than 80%.
There is mass protest in Sri Lanka against Rajapaksa due to inflation. The United Kingdom (U.K.) has reinstated advice against all but essential travel to Sri Lanka because of civil unrest in the country. Sri Lanka is negotiating a bail-out of £ 3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In addition to that, it needs U.S. $ 5 billion this year to revive its economy.
