评论
打印
Sri Lanka’s foreign minister said on Saturday that his government would send a delegation to Beijing to discuss concerns about Chinese loans underpinning development projects in the south Asian nation, revealing a potential new source of friction in the two countries’ relationship.
斯里兰卡外长上周六表示，他的政府将派遣一个代表团前往北京，讨论支撑这个南亚国家许多发展项目的中国贷款所引发的担忧。此言揭示了两国关系中潜在的新摩擦来源。
Sri Lanka’s new president, Maithripala Sirisena, defeated Mahinda Rajapaksa in a shock election result in January. Mr Rajapaksa had cultivated close ties with China, awarding Beijing-controlled companies large infrastructure projects that were backed by Chinese loans.
斯里兰卡1月份举行的大选结果令人震惊，迈特里帕拉•西里塞纳(Maithripala Sirisena)击败马欣达•拉贾帕克萨(Mahinda Rajapaksa)，成为该国新总统。拉贾帕克萨在任时与中方建立起密切关系，将一些大型基础设施项目授予中国政府控制的公司，这些项目得到中国贷款的支持。
During the campaign, Mr Sirisena had pledged to review the terms of investment projects involving Chinese companies — in particular, a $1.5bn “port city”spearheaded by China Communications Construction Company.
西里塞纳在竞选期间承诺，将重新审议涉及中资企业的投资项目的条款，尤其是由中国交通建设股份有限公司(China Communications Construction Company)牵头的15亿美元“港口城”项目。
Speaking at the conclusion of a two-day visit to Beijing, Sri Lanka foreign minister Mangala Samaraweera estimated that China had lent $5bn to support development projects in the country, most of them involving Chinese state companies. In May last year, Mr Rajapaksa’s administration put total Chinese lending at $3.8bn.
斯里兰卡外长曼加拉•萨马拉维拉(Mangala Samaraweera)在结束为期两天的北京之行时发表讲话，他估计，中国已放贷50亿美元支持斯里兰卡的发展项目，此类项目大多涉及中国国有企业。去年5月，拉贾帕克萨的政府估计中国贷款总额为38亿美元。
According to Sri Lankan media reports, interest rateson some of the loans were revised upwards when projects were renegotiated to give local parties bigger equity stakes. The cost and transparency of the Chinese loans was one of the issues raised during the country’s recent presidential campaign, and Mr Samaraweera said Sri Lanka’s finance minister would travel to Beijing to discuss the issue and possible amendments to the terms of the funding.
据斯里兰卡媒体报道，在项目得到重新谈判、以便赋予当地合作方更多股份时，其中一些贷款的利率被调高。中国贷款的成本和透明度是斯里兰卡近期总统大选期间的话题之一。萨马拉维拉表示，斯里兰卡财政部长将前往北京讨论这个问题以及修改资金条款的可能性。
“We do have some concerns,” Mr Samaraweera told reporters. “The people of Sri Lanka raised many questions, about the interest rates especially, and in certain cases about the manner in which these loans were raised.”
“我方确实有一些顾虑，”萨马拉维拉告诉记者们。“斯里兰卡人民提出了很多问题，尤其是对于利率，在某些情况下也针对这些贷款的筹措方式。”
The foreign minister added that the loan delegation would travel to Beijing after Mr Sirisena concludes a state visit to China at the end of March. The new president’s first overseas trip was to India, signalling his administration’s determination to pursue a “more balanced” foreign policy.
这位外长补充说，讨论贷款问题的代表团将在西里塞纳总统3月底结束对中国的国事访问之后前往北京。新总统的首次海外之行是访问印度，突显他的政府决心追求“更为平衡”的外交政策。
“We want to engage the world for the betterment of our people,” Mr Samaraweera said. “We want to work with everyone.”
“我们要为了我国人民的福祉与世界接触，”萨马拉维拉表示。“我们希望能和所有国家展开合作。”
Indian government officials have also expressed concerns about the port city project in Sri Lanka’s capital, Colombo, a portion of which would be granted to the Chinese developer in perpetuity.
印度政府官员也曾对斯里兰卡首都科伦坡的港口城项目表示担忧，该项目的一部分将被永久授予中国开发商。
They were further unnerved in November when Chinese warships arrived in Colombo, in a visit that coincided with a visit to Sri Lanka by Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe. Beijing-controlled companies have also been contracted to build and operate a container port in the capital.
令他们更加感到不安的是，去年11月日本首相安倍晋三(Shinzo Abe)访问斯里兰卡时，中国军舰同时抵达科伦坡。中国政府控制的公司还将在科伦坡承建和运营一个集装箱码头。
“I don’t know what circumstances led to some [Chinese] submarines coming to the port of Colombo on the very day the Japanese prime minister was visiting Sri Lanka,” Mr Samaraweera said. “But we will ensure that such incidents . . . do not happen during our tenure.”
“我不知道是什么情况导致中国潜艇在日本首相到访斯里兰卡的当天抵达科伦坡港，”萨马拉维拉表示。“但在我们任职期间，我们将确保此类事件……不发生。”
