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Sri Lanka, Another strong neighbor of India

Max The Boss

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Sri Lanka, Another strong arming neighbor of India

After 25 years of strong arming neighbor Sri Lanka, 25 year old separatist war was over now. As the war appears to draws to an end, the focus is turning to Sri Lanka’s economy. India finds itself jostling for influence, its power blunted by the Sri Lanka's fastest growing relations with China, USA and Russia.

China, USA and Russia have sold heavy weapons to the Sri Lanka as it finished one of Asia's longest-running wars, China, USA and Russia has sold fighter jets, attack\transport helicopters, anti-aircraft guns, 3D radars, small arms, multi-barrel rocket launchers, air defense missiles and trained Sri Lanka Army, Navy and Air force.

There is a convergence of strategic interests in South Asia among regional powers," says an Asian security analyst.

India trained and armed former Tiger rebels in the early 1980s and followed it up a disastrous 1987-1990 peacekeeping foray into Sri Lanka, which has cast a long shadow over the war and made Sri Lanka wary of its giant neighbor.

Strategic Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka has always been a strategic place as far as the subcontinent goes and the subcontinent has both mythological as well as historical relations with Sri Lanka. But today it is strategic importance that matters and Sri Lanka is strategically poised since it is right in the middle of Indian ocean and the complete potential of maritime possibilities and probabilities have not yet been exploited by the world that is changing every second.

Sri Lanka provides major sea routes connecting Africa, Middle East, South Asia and East Asia with Europe and chokepoints such as the Strait of Hormuz and the Strait of Malacca. The presence of all these important countries gives Sri Lanka geo-political importance keeping in view the bigger game for power in the Indian Ocean.

Strategic Indian Ocean

"Whoever controls the Indian Ocean dominates Asia. This ocean is the key to the seven seas in the twenty-first century, the destiny of the world will be decided in these waters," said U.S. Rear Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan more than a century ago.

The Indian Ocean covering 2,850,000 sq miles is the third largest in the world with several important islands and about 50 countries around.
Diego Garcia where USA has a base.
China has a base in the Coco Island which is near Myanmar.
India is already there with its Navy.
It clearly shows the presence of world and some emerging powers in the Indian Ocean. Besides Indian Ocean is a critical waterway with heavy trafficking.

Strategic relationship is also governed by Investment, and China, USA, Russia and India has a lot of room in Sri Lanka.
 
What does this article finally imply???

It implies that sri lanka would give berthing rights to countries based on their investments in sri lanka.

The last para is the summary of the article.
 

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