The country is in the midst of its worst financial crisis in seven decades and is in a difficult position for dollars to pay for critical imports, including food, fuel and medicine. The long queues, sometimes miles long, are a common sight near gas stations across the country, which has also been hit by power outages. As Washington and its allies try to reduce financial flows by supporting Moscow’s war effort, Russia is offering its crude at a great discount, making it extremely attractive to many countries. Wickremesinghe, who is also Sri Lanka’s finance minister, also said he would be willing to accept more financial aid from China, despite the island nation’s growing debts. Sri Lanka’s current plight was “on its own,” he said, and the war in Ukraine made it even worse, adding that the terrible food shortages would continue until 2024. He said Russia also offered wheat to Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka was also trying to get oil and coal from its traditional suppliers in the Middle East. Officials are negotiating with private suppliers, but Wickremesinghe said one issue they face is that “there is a lot of oil in circulation that can be returned unofficially to Iran or Russia.” Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February, world oil prices have soared.
