New President Will Find Sri Lanka’s Best Interests Lie With India

Photo: Reuters

By Farwa Aamer, Director of South Asia Initiatives,Asia Society Policy Institute

NEW YORK, NY – Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s win marks a period of hope and change for the Sri Lankans who are still recovering from the political and economic crisis of 2022. His messaging on eradicating corruption and being pro-working class resonated with the voters the most.

The election was said to be a referendum on Wickremesinghe, who helped stabilized the economy post the sharp economic crisis in 2022, but him being out of the race shows that people are now eagerly looking for a change as economic woes lingered and people hope to see a different direction from the way the country has been run or the names that have dominated the power spheres.

Economy was on the ballot and that will be the first and foremost priority for the new president. For Dissanayake, there will be high expectations of him in ushering in a new era, ensuring stability, and delivering on his promises of being an agent of change. His promises of fighting corruption (messaging that helped soar him to popularity) and renegotiating with the IMF will also be on the scorecard once the new government settles in.

With a credible voter turnout, Sri Lanka has shown how significant this election was and how much they want to see the country break away from the shackles of dynastic politics and be on a pathway of growth, development, and that too with a leader—as they see in Dissanayake—who puts Sri Lanka and its people first in every what way.

For Sri Lanka’s neighborhood and the broader international community, the new leader’s foreign policy stance will be important. Sri Lanka is after all a strategically important player for both maritime and regional security.

Though there have been ideas that Dissanayake may be more pro-China (the country’s largest creditor) given his Marxist leanings and he also, during his campaigning, had shared the intent of scrapping India’s Adani-backed wind power project calling it corrupt. But it will be in his interest to work with India, as a regional partner, as he focuses on economic development and find more mutually beneficial cooperative opportunities for the benefit of the country and regional stability.

India will also show a willingness to work with the new leader and expand bilateral ties, especially as it deals with an increasingly politically volatile neighborhood.