Sri Lanka will also protect India’s strategic interests

Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa believes in ‘India First’ policy along with pursuing a neutral foreign policy, the island country’s Foreign Secretary Jayanath Colombage said on Monday.

"President has stated that in terms of strategic security we will follow India first policy because we cannot afford to be a strategic security threat to India and we don't have to be. We need to benefit from India," the Sri Lankan Foreign Secretary said in an interview with a local media outlet.

He further said that along with pursuing a neutral foreign policy, Sri Lanka will protect India's strategic interests.

The Sri Lankan Foreign Secretary called the decision to give Hambantota port on a 99-year lease to China “a mistake".

He further said China holds “roughly 85 percent stake and Sri Lanka has a stake of only 15 percent in it.”