India, Japan & France launch platform for SL debt restructuring

WASHINGTON: India, Japan and France have announced a common platform for talks among creditors to address the debt restructuring programme of Sri Lanka which is grappling with its worst economic crisis.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki and French Director General of the Treasury Emmanuel Moulin held a press briefing on the margins of the annual spring meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington on Thursday.

“The purpose of the event was to demonstrate the multilateral cooperation regarding the debt restructuring process among the creditors, together with Sri Lanka,” said an official statement. Nirmala expressed India’s commitment to supporting Sri Lanka in dealing with its current economic crisis and emphasised that collaboration among creditors was important to ensure transparency and equality in the debt restructuring discussions.

Japan’s Suzuki said the committee was open to all creditors, voicing hope that China, Lanka’s biggest creditor, would join the initiative launched by Japan.

French Director General of the Treasury Emmanuel Moulin also joined Sitharaman and Suzuki at the press conference.

Joining the launch virtually, President Wickremesinghe said Sri Lanka remains committed to continuing to engage with all creditor nations and other stakeholders in a transparent manner based on the principles of comparable treatment.

He added he would present in Parliament the agreement with the IMF for the $2.9 billion bailout, gain approval and bring in legislation to ensure its implementation.