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The US Embassy in Colombo has publicly congratulated two Sri Lankan navy officers for completing training programmes in the United States, marking another show of deepening military cooperation between Washington and Colombo, even as concerns persist over Sri Lanka’s record of war crimes, torture, and impunity.
In a post on 26 September, the US Embassy hailed Lieutenant Commander Kathriarachchige Kathriarachchi of the Sri Lanka Navy, who was awarded the Outstanding International Student Award from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) in Monterey, California. The embassy described the recognition as “a prestigious honour presented annually to only two international students,” adding that it was “a proud moment for Sri Lanka and a boost for our shared Indo-Pacific maritime partnership.”
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The message follows a similar post last month by US Ambassador Julie Chung, who praised Lieutenant Koyan Chamitha, the first Sri Lankan to earn the US Navy SEAL Trident. Ambassador Chung said his achievement “reflects the unmatched rigour of U.S. training and the strength of U.S.–Sri Lanka security ties,” calling it “a proud moment for resilience, partnership, and a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
Both announcements were shared alongside photos of the Sri Lankan officers, highlighting Washington’s ongoing efforts to present Sri Lanka as a close regional partner. The stance that has drawn criticism from Tamil activists and human rights organisations, who say it whitewashes the Sri Lankan military’s role in mass atrocities committed during the final phase of the armed conflict in 2009. Tens of thousands of Tamils were killed in what is being increasingly recognised as a genocide.
The Sri Lankan navy in particular has long faced allegations of involvement in grave human rights violations, including the abduction, torture, and enforced disappearance of Tamil civilians. In 2015, investigations revealed that a naval base in Trincomalee had been used as an illegal detention and torture site, where numerous Tamil civilians were held and “disappeared.” Despite international calls for accountability, no senior officers have been prosecuted.
Tamil civil society groups and rights advocates have repeatedly condemned the United States’ continued military engagement with Sri Lanka, arguing that such cooperation emboldens an institution accused of crimes against humanity and undermines international efforts toward justice and accountability.
Yet, US officials have intensified military and security partnerships with Colombo under the guise of maritime cooperation and Indo-Pacific defence strategy. While Washington has occasionally imposed Magnitsky-style sanctions on individual Sri Lankan military officials, it continues to engage extensively with the same armed forces that carried out systematic violence during the war and continue to occupy Tamil lands in the North-East.