Indian Navy Chief meets Sri Lankan commanders amid push for greater military ties

The Chief of Naval Staff of the Indian Navy, Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, began a four-day official visit to Sri Lanka this week, meeting with top military leaders in Colombo as both states pledged to deepen cooperation in the Indian Ocean.

Admiral Tripathi was welcomed with full naval honours at the Sri Lankan Navy Headquarters on 22 September, where he held bilateral discussions with Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda, Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy. The two chiefs reviewed “matters of mutual interest” with an emphasis on maritime security, defence partnerships and strengthening collaboration between the two navies. The meeting concluded with an exchange of mementoes.

Later the same day, Admiral Tripathi paid courtesy calls on Deputy Defence Minister Major General Aruna Jayasekara (Retd) and Defence Secretary Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retd).

Talks with Jayasekara reportedly centred on defence diplomacy, humanitarian assistance and disaster response, and tackling non-traditional maritime threats, including drug trafficking, human smuggling and other transnational crimes in the Indian Ocean. Discussions also highlighted training and capacity-building programmes, as well as enhancing maritime domain awareness.

At his meeting with Defence Secretary Thuyacontha, the Indian Navy Chief reiterated commitments to expand joint training opportunities and strengthen military-to-military links. The talks also addressed cooperation on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, as well as information-sharing arrangements between the two countries.

Admiral Tripathi’s visit comes ahead of his participation at the 12th edition of the Galle Dialogue International Maritime Conference, organised by the Sri Lankan Navy, where regional maritime security will be a central theme.

India and Sri Lanka have sought to expand naval ties in recent years, with New Delhi providing training, equipment and patrol vessels to Colombo as part of its strategic engagement in the Indian Ocean.

During the armed conflict, India played a vital role in providing arms, intelligence and training to the Sri Lankan armed forces as it carried out its genocide of the Tamil people.