Sri Lanka has been plagued by a severe economic crisis and political unrest for months.

Now the government in Colombo has even turned to Russia for help.

As President Gotabaya Rajapaksa reported on Twitter, he asked Vladimir Putin in a telephone call on Wednesday to support the import of petrol with loans.

He also asked "in all modesty" for air traffic between Moscow and the South Asian country to be resumed by the Russian state airline Aeroflot.

Until the beginning of the war, Ukrainians and Russians were among the largest tourist groups in Sri Lanka and were an important source of income for the country.

Till Fähnders

Political correspondent for Southeast Asia.

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The President described the phone call with Putin as very "productive".

"We absolutely agreed that strengthening bilateral ties in sectors such as tourism, trade and culture is of paramount importance to reaffirm the friendship that binds our two nations," Rajapaksa wrote.

Sri Lanka had previously bought oil from Russia, as had neighboring India.

Indonesia is also planning to buy Russian oil at discounted prices.

According to a report by the German Press Agency on Thursday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that the conversation was about possible help.

However, no decision has been made so far.

Russia must first sound out its options and clarify the issue.

Endless queues in front of the gas stations

An employee of the Ministry of Energy in Sri Lanka reported that two representatives of Russian oil companies had arrived in the capital, Colombo.

The South Asian island state has been struggling for months with the worst economic crisis since its independence.

High debt, a series of unprofitable large-scale investments, a collapse in agricultural production and tourism have meant that it can no longer afford to import fuel, gas, medicines and certain foodstuffs.

Endless queues form in front of the gas stations, and the electricity is shut off for several hours every day.

The energy minister announced on Wednesday that the country only had petrol for one day.

The sale of fuel for non-essential purposes had previously been banned.

The new prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, announced in parliament on Tuesday that the country was insolvent.

It is now hoping, among other things, for help from the International Monetary Fund.

In the population, the president's family clan is held responsible for the misery.

A protest movement is therefore demanding the resignation of the president.

But he is sticking to his position.