India, SL ink major defence pact following talks between PM Modi & Prez

Colombo: For the first time, India and Sri Lanka on Saturday inked an ambitious defence cooperation pact with Prime Minister Narendra Modi outlining a broader roadmap for deeper bilateral cooperation, asserting that security of both nations is interlinked and dependent on each other.

The defence pact is among seven key agreements signed by the two sides following wide-ranging talks between PM Modi and Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

The defence pact, being seen as a major move to bolster strategic ties, came nearly four decades after the Indian Peace Keeping Force’s intervention in the island nation.

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“We believe that our security interests are similar. The security of both countries is interlinked and dependent on each other,” Modi said in his media statement.

“I am grateful to President Dissanayake for his sensitivity towards India’s interests. We welcome the important agreements concluded in defence cooperation,” he said.

In his remarks, Dissanayake said he assured PM Modi that Sri Lanka will not allow its territory to be used in any manner inimical to India’s security interests.

He said he also conveyed to Modi that India’s assistance to Sri Lanka in times of need and continuing solidarity are deeply cherished.

Another important agreement that the two sides inked was on developing Trincomalee as an energy hub.

PM Modi and President Dissanayake also virtually inaugurated the Sampur solar power project.

“The Sampur Solar Power Plant will help in Sri Lanka’s energy security. All the people of Sri Lanka will benefit from the agreements signed for building a multi-product pipeline and developing Trincomalee as an energy hub,” Modi said.

The grid inter-connectivity agreement between the two countries will open up options for Sri Lanka to export electricity, he said.

Modi said Sri Lanka has a “special place” in India’s Neighbourhood First policy and Vision ‘MAHASAGAR’.

“In the last four months, since President Dissanayake’s visit to India, our cooperation has progressed significantly,” he said.

The Modi-Dissanayake talks were held a day after the prime minister arrived in the Sri Lankan capital after concluding his trip to Bangkok where he attended a summit of the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation).

Ahead of the talks, Modi was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the historic Independence Square in the heart of the Sri Lankan capital, in the first such honour given to a foreign leader.

President Dissanayake received the prime minister at the Square — the venue for national day celebrations and takes its name from the Independence Memorial Hall built to commemorate the island nation’s independence from British rule in 1948.

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