China reiterates commitment to safeguard SL’s national dignity

Atapattu BANDARA

China will help Sri Lanka to safeguard its national dignity and territorial integrity in the future too, Political Counsellor and Chinese embassy Deputy Head of Mission Ren Faqiang said at a media briefing at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute on Wednesday.

The media briefing was held to mark the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and the People’s Republic of China and the 60th anniversary of the Sri Lanka - China Rubber Rice Pact. The Sri Lanka China Friendship Association, Sri Lanka China Society, Association for Sri Lanka China Social and Cultural Cooperation and Sri Lanka China Journalists’ Forum in collaboration with the embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Sri Lanka will celebrate the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and the People’s Republic of China and the 60th anniversary of the Sri Lanka-China Rubber-Rice Pact on July 10 at the BMICH.

“Mutual trust and bilateral relations between the two countries are very important and this has lasted for years without any interuption,” he said.

“China will assist Sri lanka as a true friend and it is very evident that Sri Lanka has a bright future, Ren Faqiang added.

“ We will do our best for the development of Sri Lanka”, he stated.

“The friendship between the two countries has grown much stronger and people to people contact developed the mutual understanding between the two nations,” he further said. China - Sri Lanka Friendship Association Secretary Sumathi Dharmawardena said Sri Lanka and the People’s Republic of China accorded each other diplomatic recognition in 1950 and in April 1952, both countries entered into the historic Rubber-Rice Pact, whereby Sri Lanka supplied rubber to China receiving rice from China in return.

“This agreement was entered into at a time when certain countries had imposed a ban on the supply of strategic materials, which included rubber, to China. Following the electoral victory led by the late Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike ,the two countries established full diplomatic relations, “he said.

Consequent to the establishment of diplomatic relations, both countries took a number of steps in the political, economic, trade and cultural fields to strengthen their bilateral relations, he said.

Prime Minister D. M. Jayaratne will be the Chief Guest at the event on July 10 at BMICH while External Affairs Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris will deliver the keynote address.