The Indian naval ship INS Sharda arrived at the Port of Colombo on 10 June for an operational turnaround visit, in the latest sign of the deepening military cooperation between India and Sri Lanka.
The Sri Lanka Navy extended a ceremonial welcome on its arrival.
INS Sharda, a Sukanya-class offshore patrol vessel under the command of Commander Kartik Sachdeva, is to remain in Sri Lanka until 13 June, during which its crew is expected to take part in a series of engagements organised by the Sri Lanka Navy aimed at strengthening ties between the two forces. The visit also facilitates the transfer of supplies from the Indian Army for Sri Lanka Army personnel serving in a United Nations peacekeeping mission.
The port call is the latest in a rapid expansion of defence ties between New Delhi and Colombo. In April 2025, during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Colombo, the two governments signed their first formal Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Cooperation, an umbrella framework providing for high-level military exchanges, joint exercises, capacity building, naval port calls and exploratory talks on defence industry collaboration. Bilateral military training began in November 2025, and Indian and Sri Lankan naval forces have conducted joint exercises off Trincomalee.
The deepening of military ties comes nearly four decades after the 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka Accord, which led to the deployment of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in the North-East, a bloody intervention during which Indian troops killed thousands of Tamils and committed grave human rights violations whose memory endures in the Tamil homeland.
India's military role during the final war was equally significant, with New Delhi providing arms, intelligence and training to the Sri Lankan armed forces as they carried out the genocide of the Tamil people, a role Tamil politicians and civil society have long warned helped enable Colombo's offensive.
Colombo has meanwhile said it cannot disclose the contents of the defence MoU without India's consent, fuelling concern over the secrecy surrounding the agreements.
