Ground broken for marina development project at Port City Colombo

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Friday to kick off the project of marina development at Port City Colombo in the Sri Lankan capital city, marking the entry into a new phase of the construction of the port city with Chinese aid.

Qi Zhenhong, Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka, and Vijitha Herath, Sri Lanka's Minister of Foreign Affairs, attended the ceremony.

The Port City Colombo project, located near Colombo's central business district, is a large-scale investment initiative jointly developed by China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) and the Sri Lankan government. It is considered a model of cooperation between China and Sri Lanka within the framwork of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Once completed, it is set to become a special economic zone combining finance, tourism, logistics and information technology.

As a key part of the project, the luxury marina development, covering a total land area of 33,776 square meters, will feature state-of-the-art facilities, including sunset bars, seaside restaurants, retail outlets, and entertainment spaces, offering a vibrant and upscale environment for visitors.

The development will also offer berthing space for up to 200 mid-to-large-sized vessels, filling a critical infrastructure gap in the region.

"Our first goal is to initiate the construction of a series of service projects, including marina apartment buildings, an international financial center, an international hospital and a school, on the basis of starting the construction of marina commercial projects. The second goal is to attract at least 300 international companies, including Chinese enterprises, to start up their business in Port City Colombo, leveraging its favorable policies," said Xiong Hongfeng, general manager of CHEC Port City Colombo (Private) Limited.

"The contribution to the GDP or to the national economy, once the whole project is fully operational, is estimated to be between 13 to 15 billion U.S. dollars annually. So that's a very very significant sum of money in the context of the Sri Lankan economy and what we want to take forward as the Sri Lanka economy as a whole," said Harsha Amarasekera, chairman of Colombo Port City Economic Commission.

Ground broken for marina development project at Port City Colombo

Rawalpindi, the garrison city neighboring Pakistan's capital Islamabad, is on high security alert ahead of the expected second round of U.S.-Iran talks.

Rawalpindi is not only an important transport hub for Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, but is also home to Nur Khan Air Base, where the U.S. delegation landed during the first round of U.S.-Iran talks.

More than 600 checkpoints were set up in the city, and local business activities were also reduced, local media reported.

Footage from a China Media Group (CMG) reporter showed that many shops in major commercial districts in downtown Rawalpindi were closed, and more police were visible on the streets.

U.S. President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post on Sunday that U.S. representatives were going to Islamabad for negotiations. Sources say advance teams from the U.S., including security personnel, have arrived in Islamabad to coordinate arrangements for the expected talks.

Meanwhile, Iran's official news agency IRNA said on the same day that the country had rejected taking part in the second round of talks.

On Feb. 28, Israel and the United States launched joint attacks on Tehran and several other Iranian cities, killing Iran's then Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, along with senior military commanders and civilians. Iran responded by launching waves of missile and drone strikes targeting Israel and U.S. bases and assets in the Middle East, and exercising tight control over the Strait of Hormuz.

A ceasefire was achieved between the warring parties on April 8, which was followed by lengthy talks between the Iranian and U.S. delegations in Pakistan's capital Islamabad on April 11 and 12.

Security strengthened in key city near Pakistan's capital ahead of expected U.S.-Iran talks