China-Sri Lanka Space Cooperation Worries India’s National Security Council
By Colombo Telegraph -
Concern is growing in Indian security establishments over increasing Chinese footprints in Sri Lanka’s strategic sectors,the Hindu reports.
According to the Hindu, the National Security Council Secretariat has called an inter-ministerial consultation next week to decide on “possible approaches” to protect “Indian interests” in its neighbourhood.
Rohitha Rajapaksa and engineers of SupremeSAT
The latest to cause alarm are reports ofChinese-Sri Lankan collaboration in the area of space, the newspaper reported.
A Sri Lankan firm, Supreme SAT (Pvt.) Ltd. is likely to launch its first communication satellite with Chinese help in 2015. In mid-2012, the National Security Adviser (NSA) had discussed this issue and the Department of Space was asked to “provide assessment of the security implications” on India due to Sri Lanka’s space programme.
Supreme SAT (Pvt.) Ltd. signed an agreement with the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka in May 2012 to launch the telecommunication satellite at a cost of $320 million in partnership with China Great Wall Industry Corporation, a state-owned Chinese company. Subsequently, it was also decided to set up a space academy-cum satellite ground station at Kandy.
The inter-ministerial meeting under the leadership of Deputy NSA on March 25 would discuss the issue threadbare, the Hindu reported.
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