Swamy lauds Modi govt's decision to swap currency with SL, says 'It's the way to go'

Senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy on July 27, congratulated PM Modi for his government's decision to swap currency with Sri Lanka at a time of critical need. He suggested that India's help would remove Sri Lanka from a tight spot and all of Sri Lanka will thank PM for it.

On Friday, July 24,  Sri Lanka signed a $400 million currency swap agreement with India's Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in order to meet their short-term international liquidity requirements amid the looming COVID crisis.

Read | Sri Lanka signs $400 MN currency swap with India to meet financial needs amid COVID

The RBI's move follows a series of technical discussions that happened on July 22 about drafting a rescheduled plan for bilateral debt repayments. The Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo has stated that they reached an agreement with the Ceylon neighbour and that the currency swap will act as a relief measure for Sri Lanka during its COVID recovery days. 

The High Commission in its statement after the discussion explained that this gesture is an example of India's strong commitment to maintaining mutually respectable relations with Sri Lanka and asserted that India and Sri Lanka will work closely in the post-COVID-19 economic recovery period.

Read | PM Modi likely to convene meeting with all State CMs on July 27 as Unlock 2 deadline nears

Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy noted that the idea to help Sri Lanka in its time of critical need was his suggestion, stating that he had brought to the notice of PM Modi about the 'legacy issue' of Sri Lanka's financial debt and that India needs to help its neighbour at this juncture.

He further added that India's timely help will be greatly received by the people of Sri Lanka and everyone from across the border will now say 'Dhanyavad!'

According to news agency ANI, The Indian delegation that took part in the discussion comprised of senior officials from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the EXIM Bank which interacted with representatives from the Department of External Resources of Sri Lanka via a video link.

Read | Sri Lanka seeks $1.1B currency swap facility from India as pandemic batters forex kitty

Earlier, PM Modi engaged in a telephonic conversation with Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his counterpart PM Mahinda Rajapaksa on May 23 and May 27 respectively to discuss and assess the impact of COVID-19 on the lives of people and the country's economy. PM Modi assured the Sri Lankan President and Rajapakse that India will offer all necessary support to mitigate the effects of the pandemic and that both countries will continue to work towards the betterment of each other as well as the region.

Read | Sri Lanka has successfully curbed community spread of coronavirus, says task force head