China ‘ignores’ Sri Lanka’s request; Spy ship nears Hambantota port

Even after Sri Lanka deferred Chinese vessel Yuan Wang 5’s plans to dock at Hambantota port, the tracking ship continued to sail towards the island nation. India has raised concerns about the Chinese ship’s voyage in the northwestern Indian Ocean as the ‘research and survey’ vessel is known to be a spy ship with state-of-the-art tracking capabilities. Following Sri Lanka’s order, Beijing asked ‘relevant parties to stop disrupting Lanka-China cooperation’. India is closely monitoring the ship’s movement in the Indian Ocean.