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Sri Lanka polls result critical to top investor China

Rajapaksa's top opponent likely to pursue more balanced foreign policy, putting China's Indian Ocean influence at risk

Published Wed, Jan 7, 2015 · 09:50 PM

New Delhi

OF all the world leaders watching the outcome of Sri Lanka's presidential elections on Thursday, Chinese President Xi Jinping has the most at stake.

China has poured money into the island nation off India's southern coastline over the past decade to become its largest investor, top government lender and second-biggest trading partner. Chinese submarines docked twice in Colombo last year, triggering protests from India.