COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s president was to hold talks with the Chinese president on a trip to Beijing that appeared to be aimed at balancing his nation’s relations with China and India, which are competing for influence in the Indian Ocean region.

Since Maithripala Sirisena was elected in January, Sri Lanka has been seen as trying to extricate itself from the heavily pro-China policies followed by his predecessor.

The president chose India for his first official visit, and this month Prime Minister Narendra Modi became the first Indian head of state to visit neighboring Sri Lanka in 28 years.

Sirisena left on Wednesday for an expected four-day visit. His office said in a statement that he would hold talks with President Xi Jinping and other officials on enhancing cooperation in trade, investment and regional and international affairs, including a China-Sri Lanka free trade agreement.