Drafts by Shakthi De Silva
Papers by Shakthi De Silva
University of colombo review, Dec 1, 2020
Tensions and competitive rivalry underpinning the Sino-American bilateral relationship has led to... more Tensions and competitive rivalry underpinning the Sino-American bilateral relationship has led to an increasingly turbulent and uncertain international environment. The scramble to avoid a binary choice between the United States or China has influenced several small and medium powers to adopt a Hedging foreign policy. But what does Hedging imply? What are its characteristics and how does one distinguish between Hedging and other types of foreign policies? In an increasingly interconnected and interdependent world, connectivity and amity with all great powers is essential for the survival of small and medium powers. Many scholars agree that Hedging is a preferable foreign policy option in this milieu because it facilitates close partnerships with great powers. However, it is imperative that clear boundaries are established between Hedging and other foreign policy approaches which also underscore friendly relations. Vague and catch-all definitions which solely accentuate "connectivity" and "robust relations with all great powers" undermine the analytical rigour of scholarship on foreign policy and cast a shadow of doubt regarding the meaning and characteristics of this approach. To this end, this article conducts a review of how Hedging has been defined and applied by scholars. By doing so, it helps distil the key attributes of Hedging and contributes to scholarly efforts to develop a precise definition of a Hedging foreign policy. The surveyed data for this research is largely restricted to secondary literature on the foreign policies of Southeast Asian and South Asian States.
Journal of The Indian Ocean Region, Aug 11, 2019
OASIS, Dec 5, 2022
China's economic resurgence augurs the possibility of a recalibration in the global balance of po... more China's economic resurgence augurs the possibility of a recalibration in the global balance of power. Many contend that this process is already underway in East Asia-specifically in relation to the South China Sea. In other parts of the world, China's growing footprint is discernible through infrastructure projects, under Beijing's Belt and Road initiative. Does China leverage its economic power to realise its interests by forcing smaller nations to accept conditions and agreements which are not in the latter's interests? This paper examines whether evidence to this effect is visible through a case study of Sri Lanka. The island's geographic S h a k t h i D e S i l v a 4 8
Sri Lanka journal of social sciences, Dec 31, 2018
Routledge eBooks, Jan 4, 2023
South Asian Survey, Sep 1, 2015
Given the strategic competition and growing rivalry between China and India, it is inherently in ... more Given the strategic competition and growing rivalry between China and India, it is inherently in the island's national interest to have a balanced approach while dealing with the two powers. As China exerts more power in South Asia, raising India's concern's of a 'Chinese Threat', Sri Lanka needs continue to be on good terms with both nations writes Shakthi De Silva.
University of Colombo Review, 2020
South Asian Survey, 2015
The foreign policy of Ceylon under the premiership of D.S. Senanayake maintained a distinct align... more The foreign policy of Ceylon under the premiership of D.S. Senanayake maintained a distinct alignment with its former coloniser Great Britain. The zenith of this relationship was the defence agreement which came into effect upon independence in 1948. Utilising the existing scholarship on neorealism and the concept of security dilemma, analysis of the reasons behind this strategic alignment exposes the threat perception Ceylon faced from its regional hegemon, India. This study surveys such threat perceptions faced by the island at the time of independence and argues that this led to a balancing strategy with Britain. It first locates Ceylon’s foreign policy employing the taxonomies of balancing, bandwagoning and hedging and then examines how Ceylon’s extra-regional alignment with the UK enabled her to eschew from a security dilemma with India.
Journal of the Indian Ocean Region, 2019
Sri Lanka Journal of Social Sciences, 2018
As China's influence in the Indian Ocean Region grows in preponderance, Indian anxieties have con... more As China's influence in the Indian Ocean Region grows in preponderance, Indian anxieties have concomitantly intensified. Faced with finite choices as an island in the Indian Ocean, it is intrinsically in Sri Lanka's interest to balance both powers. This study examines the escalating strategic competition between India and China in Sri Lanka and unpacks the contours of their activities and their linkages with the island. It assesses the dexterity of the Sirisena administration to actualize a balanced foreign policy in contrast to its predecessor and outlines a policy formulation which would support the government in its endeavor. The article also contributes to the foreign policy strategising literature by configuring four conceivable external dynamics Sri Lanka may face in future.
International Relations literature Literature by Syed Hussein Alatas (SH Alatas) and Syed Farid A... more International Relations literature Literature by Syed Hussein Alatas (SH Alatas) and Syed Farid Alatas (SF Alatas) asserts that intellectual imperialism lingers decades after the declaration of independent states in former colonies. According to SF Alatas, this involves a domination of "one people by another in their world of thinking" (2021b, p.11; 2021a). SH Alatas and SF Alatas argues that this is apparent when one examines the scholarly perspectives or worldview of Global South academics. Thus, this intellectual imperialism has engendered a scientific colonialism whereby "the centre of gravity for the acquisition of knowledge about the nation is [also] located outside the nation itself" (Galtung, 1967, p. 13). Scientific knowledge, as taught in primary, secondary and tertiary educational institutes in the Global South, tends to draw from Western academic literature. This is evident if one traces the flow of social scientific knowledge according to SF Alatas. More often than not, the hegemonic position which Western literature has achieved is not because it was imposed on the Global South but instead as it was "accepted willingly with confident enthusiasm" (Alatas, 2021b, p. 11) by the scholarly community in the Global South. As a result, the knowledge produced in former colonies is often conditioned by Western academic literature. This creates a suitable backdrop for the emergence of a 'captive mind'. SF Alatas defines a captive mind as an imitative and uncreative mode of thinking, often evident among Global South scholars, when they base their writing on Western categories and modes of thought. "Among the characteristics of the captive mind are the inability to be creative and raise original problems, the inability to devise original analytical methods, and alienation from the main issues of indigenous society" (Alatas, 1995, p. 90). A captive mind, therefore, fails to challenge Western interpretations if they are found wanting, do not develop original research problems and "do not devise original analytical methods" (Alatas, 2021, p. 15). As a result, Global South scholars with a captive mind often imitate the theoretical and conceptual analysis, "style of writing and the choice of themes" in Western academic work (Alatas, 2000, p. 28). This applies to several social science domains including that of International Relations. Despite the efforts of Barry Buzan (2021), Amitav Acharya (2007) and more recently Ayse Zarakol (2022), the theoretical, conceptual, and methodological foundations of International Relations continues to be predominantly western oriented. The field boasts several theories including Liberalism, Realism and Constructivism largely shaped by scholars from the West. Although several Global South scholars have made notable strides in subjects such as
The 2022 movie 'Don't look up' holds up a magnifying glass at society to show us what transpires ... more The 2022 movie 'Don't look up' holds up a magnifying glass at society to show us what transpires when humanity encounters a cataclysmic extinction level event. It depicts a United States President, too caught up with mitigating political scandals and obtaining sufficient support to win the next election, to be invested in thwarting global annihilation from an oncoming asteroid.
This essay explores the bilateral investment of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the Lao P... more This essay explores the bilateral investment of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Laos) and Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (Sri Lanka). It specifically draws attention to the China-Laos Railway and the Hambantota Port in Sri Lanka to examine whether Chinese investment projects are indicative of the PRC’s ‘Debt Trap Diplomacy’ or instead are examples of ‘Win-Win’ partnerships between countries of the Global South. The essay begins by sketching the ‘Debt Trap Diplomacy’ narrative as discussed in the media and scholarly work and then turns to the PRC’s soft power characterization of ‘Win-Win’ partnerships. The next section also justifies why the cases of Sri Lanka and Laos have been selected for this study.
The European Parliament's Resolution P9TA (2021)-0290 recommends the discontinuation of the GSP+ ... more The European Parliament's Resolution P9TA (2021)-0290 recommends the discontinuation of the GSP+ concession to Sri Lanka on the basis that the island is not complying with the GSP+ agreement's stipulations. The European Union is one of Sri Lanka's largest export markets and the GSP+ concession has enabled domestic exporters to more effectively penetrate European markets since 2017. The Government can implement three different policy postures in response to the European Parliament's Resolution. The approach that maximizes the Government's and local exporters' interests is to adopt a policy of "cosmetic change". This policy is projected to appease the European Parliament, prolong the provision of the GSP+, reassure Sri Lankan exporters and ensure the Government's stability and longevity in forthcoming elections.
Research series on the Chinese dream and China's development path, 2023
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Drafts by Shakthi De Silva
Papers by Shakthi De Silva
(1956-1959) and Sirisena -Wickremesinghe (2015-2018) administrations composed the island's foreign policy in the backdrop of major power rivalries. It investigates whether domestic variables compelled the Bandaranaike and Sirisena-Wickremesinghe administrations to detract from their coveted ‗independent and utilitarian foreign policy‘ in the backdrop of a major power rivalry. This research draws from diverse sources of literature and employs a triangulation of quantifiable evidence, interviews and primary as well as secondary qualitative data. By applying Neoclassical Realism as the theoretical basis of this study, the author is able to explain how 4 domestic intervening variables interfered in foreign policy decision making. The Findings derived from Chapter 3 and 4 sheds light on how external and
internal variables determined the foreign policy behavior of the two regimes. Although major power geopolitical rivalries and domestic economic factors impelled the country to adopt a balanced and utilitarian policy between major powers, the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe administration was unable to formulate a utilitarian foreign policy owing to the influence of domestic intervening variables. Thus, this thesis proves the hypothesis laid out in Chapter 1 by demonstrating how domestic intervening variables
redirected the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe administration away from an optimal and utilitarian strategy. Finally, the author provides policy recommendations for future administrations to take note of when molding Sri Lanka's foreign policy.