Sri Lanka President grants special approval for UN vessel amid FAO warning of $1 million loss –

Sri Lanka President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has granted special approval for the UN-flagged research vessel Dr Fridtjof Nansen to enter Sri Lankan waters, a Foreign Ministry official said, following repeated requests from the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). The vessel was scheduled to carry out marine ecosystem research from July 15 to August 20.
 
However, the FAO has raised doubts about whether the mission can proceed as planned, citing delays in Sri Lanka’s decision-making. The FAO has warned that cancelling the visit could cost Sri Lanka over $1 million and postpone future missions until after 2030. The initial approval was withheld pending the formulation of standard operating procedures (SOPs) for foreign research vessels, exercise the Dissanayake cabinet initiated in January.
 
Sri Lanka’s cabinet in January this year had decided to appoint a committee to come up with a new SOP to facilitate foreign research ships. Sri Lanka had imposed a one-year moratorium on foreign research vessels, which ended in December last year. The moratorium was imposed by Sri Lanka’s previous government on the deployment of all foreign research vessels in Sri Lankan waters over concerns about the collection and sharing of data, which could have security implications in the region.
 
Meanwhile, during his visit to India in December last year and during PM Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka in April this year, President Dissanayake had stated that he would not allow Sri Lanka’s territory to be used in any way that is detrimental to the interests of India.