In boost to ties, India inks key defence pact with Sri Lanka

THE DEAL MARKS THE FIRST TIME THAT INDIA AND UAE WILL JOIN HANDS FOR AN ENERGY PROJECT IN SOUTH ASIA

- Rezaul H Laskar

COLOMBO: A defence cooperation agreement finalised by India and Sri Lanka on Saturday, the first pact of its kind, will make existing initiatives more structured and lead to more joint exercises and potential defence industry collaboration, foreign secretary Vikram Misri said.

The memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation marks the first refresh of ties in this important sector since India's troubled intervention in Sri Lanka's civil war in the late 1980s, and comes at a time when India has been concerned about China's increasing presence in its strategic backyard.

The agreement triggered protests by hardline political elements in Sri Lanka, such as the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), whose leaders described it as a "betrayal" of the island nation's interests. Sri Lanka's defence secretary Sampath Thuyacontha, however, said activities under MoU will be in line with international best practices and wouldn't conflict with national policies of Sri Lanka or India.

After the MoU was unveiled at an event attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Misri told a media briefing in Colombo that the agreement was the outcome of "very good conversations" between the two leaders that began last December when Dissanayake visited New Delhi. "A point of really close convergence in the narratives from both sides has been a recognition of the completely interlinked nature of the national security of Sri Lanka and India," Misri said.