Gulbin Sultana

Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s resignation is unlikely to bring the desired political outcome and the much-needed economic relief to the people of Sri Lanka.

• Gulbin Sultana |
• July 21, 2022 |
• Issue Brief

Research Analyst, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Dr Gulbin Sultana’s article ‘Indian assistance to crisis ridden Sri Lanka’ has been published in Financial Express on 26 June 2022.

India’s assistance to Sri Lanka is in line with its policy of “neighbourhood first” and vision for “Security and Growth for All (SAGAR).” These twin principles underline India’s emphasis on emerging as a first respondent as well as working in collaboration with other countries to meet the requirements of neighbouring countries in the Region, says Dr Sultana.

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Associate Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Dr Gulbin Sultana’s article on the appointment of Ranil Wickremesinghe as the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka has been published in Financial Express on 14 May 2022.

This is unfortunate that at a time when the country needs to implement effective solutions to overcome the worst economic crisis ever, the political stalemate to form an interim government since the first week of April was about to push the country towards anarchy, says Dr Sultana.

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Associate Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Dr Gulbin Sultana’s commentary ‘IMF Assistance as a solution to Sri Lanka's Economic Crisis’ has been published by the Kalinga International Foundation on 28 April 2022.

Even though many in Sri Lanka breathe a sigh of relief at the government’s decision to approach the IMF, the negotiation itself does not imply immediate disbursement of the financial support. Successful negotiation and finalization of the deal will take another five to six months. In the meantime, Sri Lanka would require bridge financing of around US$ 3-4 billion, for which Sri Lanka is looking toward the bilateral partners and the World Bank, says r Sultana.

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Associate Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Dr Gulbin Sultana’s opinion piece, ‘Deepening crisis in Sri Lanka: An opportunity for India to displace China?’ has been published in First Post on 19 April 2022.

The piece analyses why expecting goodwill towards India to lead to a dampening of relations between Sri Lanka and China would be unrealistic.

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Associate Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Dr Gulbin Sultana’s Op-ed ‘Sri Lanka heading towards Political Instability amidst Economic Crisis’ has been published by Financial Express on 05 April 2022.

The economic crisis in Sri Lanka has caused political instability and tension which in turn has pushed the country towards more economic uncertainty creating a vicious circle of political economy, says Dr Sultana.

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Associate Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Dr Gulbin Sultana’s article ‘Ensuring energy security during foreign reserves crisis in Sri Lanka’ has been published in Financial Express on 23 March 2022.

Delay or non-implementation of many of the policy decisions have reduced Sri Lanka’s resilience to face any crisis in the energy sector. While the National policy and strategy of Sri Lanka has recognized some of the major hindrances and formulated plans to minimise those hindrances, the main focus of the government at this moment is ensuring the availability of fuel and cooking gas in the country for daily use, says Dr Sultana.

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Depletion in foreign reserves has led to uncertainty about Sri Lankan government’s ability to account for import of essential items and debt servicing. Analyses of government’s policy measures and global geopolitical-economic developments suggest that a state of uncertainty is hovering over Sri Lankan economy.

• Gulbin Sultana |
• March 10, 2022 |
• Issue Brief

Associate Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Dr Gulbin Sultana’s commentary ‘Is India Gaining Influence in Sri Lanka?’ has been published by the Kalinga International Foundation on 22 February 2022.

At this critical juncture when Sri Lanka is seeking economic assistance as well as support at the 49th regular session of the UNHRC, it would not like to offend India. At the same time, Sri Lanka would not like to allow India to have an unfettered strategic influence in Sri Lanka due to the old perceived or misperceived fear of losing strategic autonomy despite receiving substantial economic assistance from the latter.

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Chinese reaction to the Sri Lankan Ministry of Agriculture’s decision to cancel an organic fertiliser deal has demonstrated that China is not hesitant to take punitive action against Sri Lanka, if its interests are not fulfilled.

• Gulbin Sultana |
• February 10, 2022 |
• Issue Brief