Sri Lanka hurts as China wants more from IMF

Colombo (News 1st): China's separate approach to Sri Lanka’s debt treatment 'has made life difficult', said the Ranil Wickremesinghe, the President of the island nation of 22 million people. 

Speaking to India's FirstPost, Wickremesinghe said that Sri Lanka's economy is not out of the woods yet.

Noting the China is the largest bilateral creditor to Sri Lanka, the President said that it is the international Sovereign bonds held by private creditors that are the biggest creditors.

"China has been in it separately, we negotiate with them separately. This has nothing to do with Sri Lanka or any other country. They are not satisfied with the terms they are getting from the IMF and the World Bank, they feel that they should have a bigger role to play in the IMF so they've decided to opt out of it and they're going separately. It's making life more difficult for all of us who are in debt. But this is the reason. It's something that has to be sorted out by the big boys," elaborated Wickremesinghe.

He said that China is sending a message to the IMF and others so it is upto them to sort it.