Former Minister Ali Sabry has backed the Government’s decision to impose a 50% surcharge on vehicle imports, describing it as a prudent step to protect Sri Lanka’s fragile external sector amid global instability.

“The Government’s decision to impose a 50% surcharge on the import of vehicles, in the midst of escalating global uncertainty and external pressures, is a prudent and timely measure aimed at protecting Sri Lanka’s fragile external sector and preserving scarce foreign exchange reserves,” Sabry said in a statement on social media. 

He welcomed the exemption for Letters of Credit opened on or before May 15, 2026, calling it a fair safeguard. 

“It avoids unnecessary uncertainty, prevents retrospective complications, and protects already embattled importers from further hardship and arbitrary administrative difficulties. In times of crisis, clarity, consistency, and fairness in implementation are just as important as the policy itself,” he added.

Sabry warned that Sri Lanka’s recovery remains vulnerable to global conflicts that disrupt energy markets, trade routes, supply chains, investor confidence, tourism, and financing conditions.

He stressed that smaller, import‑dependent economies pay a disproportionately heavy price for wars and geopolitical confrontations.

“Ultimately, this is precisely why Sri Lanka and other like‑minded nations must continue to urge all parties involved in conflicts to pursue peaceful negotiations, diplomacy, and resolution through dialogue rather than aggression, escalation, and invasions,” he noted, emphasizing that the economic and human costs of war are borne most painfully by ordinary people in vulnerable nations. (Newswire)

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