Episode Details

Sri Lanka is in crisis right now. After months of fuel, medicine and food shortages, protestors have taken to the streets – and the homes of the country’s leaders. The now-former Prime Minister’s house was set ablaze. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled to Singapore, then resigned. Normally a good friend and funder of projects under his government, China’s government has gone silent as the former president lost the confidence of the country.

But until now, China has spent billions investing in infrastructure projects in countries, including Sri Lanka, as part of its Belt and Road Initiative. The Globe’s Asia Correspondent James Griffiths says that China will be closely watching the unrest and will be evaluating whether Sri Lanka will stay within its sphere of influence.