Elisha Fernando
1G-20, Asia Pacific Leadership Program 2022, East West Center, Hawaii, USA
Abstract - Sri Lanka’s geostrategic location in the heart of the Indian Ocean at the nexus of maritime trading routes is the gateway of connecting Europe (West) and the Middle East to China and the rest of Asia (East). As per Alfred Mahan, whoever controls the Indian Ocean has prospects of ruling the world which best describes Indian Ocean Region (IOR) becoming a hub of strategic competition.
American interests in the region include securing energy resources from the Persian Gulf and maintaining the free flow of trade in the Indian Ocean along with the QUAD and AUKUS strategic alliances. With shared democratic values, America continues a cordial relationship being a strong supporter of ethnic reconciliation in Sri Lanka. China’s growing influence in the region by means of ‘String of Pearls strategy’ and ‘Belt and Road Initiative’, has impacted Sri Lanka’s posture in international affairs mainly aftermath of ceding Hambantota Port to China for a 99-year lease. In this backdrop, with its key geostrategic location, Sri Lanka plays a vital role in inter-regional and extra-regional power game in IOR.
Most importantly, at the very moment with the on-going protests by the people of Sri Lanka demanding the President and the Government to resign, people of Sri Lanka aspire for a better futuristic state policy to secure its state sovereignty and cosmopolitanism while seeking international connections via geopolitical interdependency. In these circumstances, the East West Center undoubtedly seems the best platform to protect and preserve the center of gravity between the East’ West’ sphere of influences in the strategic competition of IOR.
Therefore, the research problem is focussed on identifying the pivotal role of Sri Lanka in the US Indo-Pacific Policy with special focus on Sri Lanka’s geostrategic location and the future foreign policy of Sri Lanka with the upcoming political shift. To identify feasible outcomes, the methodology adopted will be qualitative based on both primary and secondary sources. Primary sources include in-depth discussions with scholars and experts in state crafting, defence and strategic studies and diplomacy. Secondary sources include media and scholarly work. The main objective of this study is to delve into the importance of Sri Lanka’s role in IOR geopolitics and to advance “Sri Lanka matters for America/ America matters for Sri Lanka”
Key words- Sri Lanka, US Indo-Pacific Policy, Geostrategic Location, East West Relations
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