Aerial photo taken on Sept. 3, 2020 shows construction site for the Port City project in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa Thursday called for the construction of a multi-billion-USD Port City project to be accelerated, saying it is a landmark in the island country and will be the main income generator for the future. Rajapaksa inspecting the Colombo Port City construction site, in the heart of capital Colombo, to mark the sixth anniversary since the project, jointly developed by the Sri Lankan government and China's CHEC Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd, was launched in 2014. Photo: Xinhua

China and Sri Lanka have long been friends and both sides are actively cooperating under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a spokesperson from China's Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.

At the invitation of the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa inspected the Chinese-built Colombo Port City project on Thursday on the occasion of the sixth anniversary of the project's completion.

"The port city will be a new landmark of Sri Lanka and a key engine for future development, not only for the present, but also for future generations," said the prime minister.

The Colombo Port City project is one example of China-Sri Lanka friendship under the BRI, said a Foreign Ministry spokesman.

"In the past few years, China has become the most important source of investment in Sri Lanka. A series of major cooperation projects have covered all aspects of Sri Lanka's economic and social development, creating 60,000 jobs every year. This shows the nature of BRI cooperation, which is mutually beneficial and win-win," the spokesperson added.

The Port of Colombo, located in the heart of the country's capital Colombo, is the largest and busiest port in Sri Lanka.

"China appreciates the great importance Sri Lanka attaches to the port city project and is ready to support Chinese enterprises to strengthen cooperation with Sri Lanka to steadily advance the port city project and boost Sri Lanka's economic and social development," the spokesperson said.