Xi Jinping is winning the war without firing a shot in Sri Lanka, observes Colonel R Hariharan (retd).
Both Mahinda Rajapaksa and Modi have learnt from their past mistakes. Modi has understood that Rajapaksa is a 'forever politician' that India has to live with, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
At the end of October, Sri Lanka President Maithripala Sirisena handed over the deeds for the transfer of 116 hectares in Colombo Port City to China Harbour Engineering Company on a 99-year lease to build a financial centre.
The protests brought home the fact that the Sri Lankan public is in no mood for halfway measures, as voices against Rajapaksa 'family rule' and 'securitisation' of the civilian administration began sidestepping the more critical economic crisis, affecting the nation and afflicting the individual, observes Sri Lanka watcher N Sathiya Moorthy.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday met Sri Lanka's top leadership and discussed a host of issues, including the debt crisis faced by the island nation, investments, promoting tourism and the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic as the two countries marked the 65th anniversary of diplomatic ties.
Colombo seems to be veering to the middle path between China and the US on global matters, but in regional matters of strategic security, it is increasingly identifying with India, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Modi government wants to have a smooth relationship with the DMK government.
Rajapaksa has blamed India, the United States and European countries for his humiliating defeat.
We can expect to see more Chinese wolf warrior diplomats on the prowl, in India's neighbourhood, though its mailed fist is not so visible while dealing with India, observes Colonel R Hariharan (retd).
'Gotabaya will expect India to observe the red line.' 'He even dispensed with any gesture welcoming India as an interlocutor on the Tamil issue.' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
China for the first time has divulged the deployment of a nuclear submarine for anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden, a move defence experts say could cause unease among neighbours, including India.
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