Country Profile

Sri Lanka, the “Wonder of Asia”, formerly known as Ceylon, has long served as an important strategic destination in the Indian Ocean, catering to merchants and travellers from South-east Asia, India, the Middle East and East Africa. While much of the country’s recent history has been tainted by a decades-long civil war, post-conflict euphoria has brought a sense of renewal and optimism to the island nation. A new administration, elected in 2015, has pledged its commitment to inclusive governance and economic reform, as well as rebalancing its foreign policy and reconciling with the country’s ethnic minorities.

This chapter contains an interview with President Maithripala Sirisena, a viewpoint from Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, and interviews with Hugo Swire, Minister of State, British Foreign and Commonweath Office; and Arjun Bahadur Thapa, Secretary General, South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation.