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| Wednesday, 17 November 2004 |
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Relevance of East European states to Sri Lanka Excerpts of an interview with Sri Lanka's Ambassador to Austria and several East European states D. L. Mendis, as published in the Autumn Edition of the 'Diplomatic Magazine What are your impressions of Austria?
At the outset, let me say how privileged I am to be in your beautiful country which has been described as "the garnish to Europe". Her capital, the city of Vienna was indeed the center of the Austro-Hungarian Empire that lasted almost 800 years. Dr. Henry Kissinger once said the Austrian diplomat Prince Metternich was able to secure peace for Europe at the 1815 Congress of Vienna for another 100 years despite the destruction and havoc caused by the Napoleonic wars. Since then, Austria has retained her importance as a venue not only for music, art and culture, but also for diplomacy and the negotiation of important treaties such as the 1963 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the 1969 Vienna Convention of the Law of Treaties, the 1988 UN Convention on Illicit Trafficking on Narcotic Drugs and more recently the 2002 UN Convention on Transnational Organized Crime and the 2003 UN Convention Against Corruption. Which countries are you accredited to? I am also accredited to several East European countries. These are the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. As you will note, most of these countries were once provinces of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. However, with the demise of the Cold War and the lifting of the Iron Curtain, I am in a vantage position to witness the re-integration of these countries as member states of the European Union. In this short period, the embassy has made good contacts in these countries for economic diplomacy. On 1st May 2004, four of them joined the European Union. Hence, I have been suddenly catapulted as Ambassador to five European Union states. Almost all the countries, without a shred of doubt, are politically relevant to Sri Lanka. The administration of the multi-ethnic empire, with a federal structure, attracted illustrious personalities from various parts of the empire to function as ministers of states, civil servants and physicians. In the reign of Empress Maria Theresia, it has been said that she appointed as the Chief Medical Officer, the best physician in the Federation, not on the basis of ethnicity, but on the basis of merit. The Nobel Prize laureate for literature, Dr. Ivo Andric's fiction "The Bridge Over the Drina" provides a good read for Sri Lankans to understand the origins of the clash of ethnicity in the Austro-Hungarian-Balkan-Ottoman histories. The disintegration of the Federation Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) is also very relevant to Sri Lanka at this juncture. Some of the republics have become independent states and are rebuilding their constitutional and political structures after separation from the FRY. One republic has even joined the European Union. Indeed, I experienced a sense of deja vous when I visited some of the new states of the former FRY. Prior to my visits to these states, I enjoyed, as background reading, the books titled "A Memoire" by Madeleine Albright and the "Balkan Ghosts" by Robert D. Kaplan. It is also important to note that all the accredited countries are small states in the international community. No doubt these states will encounter similar challenges in a new world order in which globalization requires restructuring of the political economy of these countries. Hence, the politics of these countries are relevant to Sri Lanka. Are the accredited countries economically relevant to Sri Lanka? An emphatic "Yes". After all, it was in this part of the world that the Renaissance movement started. Some of these countries began to develop industrially, intellectually and culturally during this period. At one time they set the pace for the rest of the world. Unfortunately, these countries suffered economically after World War II. Austria, for example, has a good infrastructure. She has expertise in the construction of bridges and tunnels, hydropower generation, water treatment, and the construction of roads and railways to suit modern times. The Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary are transitional states. They have transformed themselves very well from centrally planned economies to market economies in a very short period and therefore constitute good economic models for Sri Lanka. At present, these countries can invest in Sri Lanka and profit through the Free Trade Agreement with India, as she has a huge market with the emerging middle class almost equivalent to the population of Europe. The Eastern European states provide an opportunity for economic diplomacy, as these countries are showing a good rate of growth in the last few years.
The Embassy has taken measures to attract many tourists from this Region. Some of them have received direct investment from West European countries and East Asian countries. The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary may be even called "the Little Tigers in East Europe". The region as a whole, like Phoenix, may rise to be a formidable player in the European Union. Hence, Sri Lanka should establish better economic relations. Are you accredited to the United Nations and do you enjoy its work programs? Yes, We are a small state. We have no separate ambassadors for bilateral and multilateral relations. Certainly, as a former UN official with a multi-disciplinary background, I enjoy the discussions and consultation in the work program of the UN relating to the concept of human security, protection of states from nuclear terrorism, non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and the attainment of millennium development goals. The work programs of UNOV, IAEA and UNIDO are of capital importance to the international community and will enhance the importance of Vienna as the third UN City. How would you sum up the importance of Austria? It is difficult to do so on the spur of the moment. Let me try. On the bilateral level, the transformation of states into market economies and the reintegration of some of the East European states into the European Union provides scope for us to engage in economic diplomacy. In this context, Vienna is the ideal venue to undertake economic diplomacy through a network of Honorary Consulates. In the multilateral level, the presence of UN and Specialized Agencies provides a platform for Sri Lanka to play a robust role in multilateral relations within the UN system. Recently, we participated effectively in the negotiation of the Convention Against Corruption. Apart from this, Vienna provides the best landscape with its concert halls, golf and entertainment to improve Sri Lanka's bilateral and multilateral relations not only with accredited states, but also with states beyond this region, since Vienna is a favourite venue for many foreign ministers. |
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