China is ready to help Sri Lanka cope with economic difficulties and improve people's living conditions, Chinese Commerce Ministry spokeswoman Shu Jueting said on Thursday
BEIJING (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th July, 2022) China is ready to help Sri Lanka cope with economic difficulties and improve people's living conditions, Chinese Commerce Ministry spokeswoman Shu Jueting said on Thursday.
"China will continue to support Sri Lanka to the best of its ability amid the difficulties that the country is facing so that it can recover its economy as soon as possible and improve people's living conditions," Shu told a briefing.
The official added that China is ready to maintain close contacts with Sri Lanka and "meet the challenges together."
"We will together maintain a healthy and stable development of relations under our trade agreement (China-Ceylon Rice Rubber Pact signed in 1952)," Shu said.
Sri Lanka is mired in a political deadlock caused by the country's worst economic crisis since gaining independence in 1948. The country has been hit with anti-governmental protests which culminated on Saturday, when activists in Colombo took control of the residences of the president and the prime minister, demanding their resignation.
Ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled the country late Tuesday, declared his intention to resign and appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as interim president. The parliament will hold a presidential election on July 20 and appoint a caretaker government, which will remain in power until the next general election.
