The letter, submitted by Clifford Chance US LLP on behalf of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, responds to and refutes the claims raised by HRB in its 1 October 2024 correspondence to the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.

The HRB, a creditor pursuing claims after Sri Lanka’s sovereign default in 2022, has challenged Sri Lanka’s efforts to secure further stays in the proceedings. The plaintiff HRB has argued that political changes following the recent Presidential election threaten the success of the debt restructuring plan and make it impractical to delay the litigation any longer.

However, Sri Lanka’s legal team insists that despite the change in leadership, the Government remains fully committed to the International Monetary Fund (IMF)-backed economic program and is working diligently to implement the restructuring process.