Sri Lanka at the UN: A diplomatic appearance that raises more questions than answers 

By Dinouk Colombage 

Following last night’s address by Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister, Vijitha Herath, at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the foreign ministry is now faced with some uncomfortable questions. 

As depicted below, in the screenshot from the official feed, the assembly hall was devoid of participants, with many of those in attendance simply seat-fillers from various permanent missions. Our Foreign Minister was slated to address the General Assembly on the 28^th of September, which was the final day of the General Debate. 

While the debate was scheduled to conclude on the 28^th, the world leaders and many of the foreign ministers had completed their addresses the previous week ahead of the weekend, with the greater majority of them returning to their own countries. Unfortunately for Sri Lanka, who holds a pride of place in the UN, having spearheaded several prominent initiatives, found itself concluding the sessions with only the foreign ministers of Mali, Malawi and Eritrea in attendance. 

Key nations such as India, China, the U.S. and other partner states had concluded their addresses, and many had departed New York ahead of Minister Herath’s visit. 

•We must now ask why was Minister Herath dispatched so late to the UNGA? 

•Without any noteworthy engagements being reported by the government from New York, would it not have been prudent for the country’s Permanent Representative to the UN to have been entrusted with delivering the national address? 

•Was Sri Lanka unable to secure a more high-profile speaking slot for the Minister of Foreign Affairs? 

•While the Minister had traveled to New York over the weekend, there were no reported official engagements or meetings. Was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs unable to secure any meetings with foreign delegates? 

With all this in mind, a larger question that requires greater attention is whether or not Sri Lanka’s foreign policy has fallen by the way side. 
(The writer previously served as the Director of International Affairs to former President Ranil Wickremesinghe and is the current Chief Research Officer of the Geopolitical Cartographer) 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the official position of this publication.