Sri Lanka is prepared to deepen long-term cooperation with China and its South Asian neighbours across marine science, fisheries, aquaculture, the blue economy, technology, investment and training, Minister of Fisheries, Aquatic and Ocean Resources Ramalingam Chandrasekar said, delivering the keynote at a regional forum in China.
The China–South Asian Countries Marine Cooperation Forum was held on 17 and 18 September in the Qingdao West Coast New Area, the Daily Mirror reported. It drew more than 100 officials, experts and academics from China, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, the Maldives and Pakistan.
The Minister attended during a three-day official visit made at the invitation of Zexun Wei, Director General of the First Institute of Oceanography under China’s Ministry of Natural Resources.
The delegation
Chandrasekar was accompanied by Ministry Secretary Dr. B.K. Kolitha Kamal Jinadasa; Dr. Sanath Hettiarachchi, Chairman of the National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA); NARA Director General Dr. K.H.M.L. Amaralal; and Senior Oceanography Researcher Dr. W.N.C. Priyadarshani.
The composition is notable: this was a scientific institution delegation rather than a commercial or diplomatic one, with NARA’s chairman and director general both travelling.
What was discussed
Sessions covered climate change, marine environmental protection, ocean disaster monitoring, early warning systems, disaster risk reduction and capacity building.
Chandrasekar said shared threats — climate change, marine pollution, resource depletion and illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing — do not stop at national borders, and called for joint research, data sharing, marine observation and disaster early-warning mechanisms across the region.
He described China, a leading global producer in fisheries and aquaculture, as offering useful models in scientific capability, policy design and planning. Sri Lanka’s own strategy, he said, is to relieve pressure on wild fish stocks by expanding aquaculture, ocean-based industries, value-added products and modern technology.
Both countries are reforming their fisheries law: China’s revised Fisheries Law is reported to take effect on 1 May 2026, while Sri Lanka’s own legislative changes are under way.
The non-alignment line
The Minister explicitly reaffirmed that Sri Lanka will engage in regional fisheries and maritime affairs while upholding its non-aligned policy.
That sentence is the diplomatic content of the trip. Marine research cooperation with China — particularly ocean observation and data sharing in the Indian Ocean — is among the most closely watched areas of Sri Lanka’s foreign relations, and the Minister’s decision to volunteer the non-alignment qualifier in a keynote in China, rather than in response to a question at home, signals awareness of how the visit would be read.
Still unstated
Whether any agreement, memorandum or funding commitment was signed; what Sri Lanka is specifically seeking from China in marine science; whether the cooperation involves ocean data collection in Sri Lankan waters, and on what terms; when the reported IUU-fishing and early-warning mechanisms would be established; and what the visit cost.
