#12061. A harbour in the country, a city in the sea: Infrastructural conduits, territorial inversions and the slippages of sovereignty in Sino-Sri Lankan development narratives

August 2026publication date
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Journal’s subject area:
Sociology and Political Science;
Geography, Planning and Development;
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Abstract:
This paper considers infrastructure as a means to develop new understandings of the inter-relationships between territory and sovereignty. It argues that inverting the terrestrial assumption of territory can lead to “slippages” of sovereignty in which territorial sovereignty is indirectly claimed through the assertion of governance rights. These inversions are explored based on land reclamation and the removal of land by the ocean. These territorial inversions are considered based on the Port City Colombo project – in which territory is claimed from the ocean through the creation of an island infrastructure – and the Hambantota International Port project – in which territory is removed by the ocean through the creation of a man-made port. Both projects reveal the ways in which infrastructure investments are implicated in the region-building ambitions of the Belt and Road Initiative, and thus provide conduits through which Chinese sovereignty can be asserted.
Keywords:
BRI; Infrastructural islands; Slippages of sovereignty; Sri Lanka; Territorial inversions

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