New Delhi, Feb. 14 -- In an unusual move on the eve of Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake's official visit to China, the government thought it was necessary to reiterate the 'One-China policy' and put the record straight that Taiwan and Tibet are part of the People's Republic of China. Although Sri Lanka was always committed to the One-China policy, there was an unwritten covenant to refrain from directly referring to Tibet or its religious patriarch Dalai Lama due to the sentiments of Sri Lanka's Buddhist majority.

In his first address to the nation, President Dissanayake emphasized that Sri Lanka, as an island nation, has the potential to attain a higher standing in the international arena by adopting a non-aligned foreign p...