China on Monday said Sri Lanka has allowed its satellite and missile tracking ship to berth at the Hambantota port on August 16, but declined to reveal details of talks with Colombo leading to the bankrupt island’s government reversing its earlier stand to defer the high-tech vessel’s entry.
“As you said, Sri Lanka has given Yuan Wang-5 the permission to berth at its port,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a media briefing in Beijing, responding to a question about Colombo giving its nod for the ship to berth at Hambantota Port days after asking it to defer the visit following reported concerns expressed by India and the U.S.
Mr. Wang, however, declined to go into details of Beijing’s talks with Colombo in relation to the berthing of the ship.
