Sri Lanka Armed Forces - Strategic Importance

Strategic Importance

The posture of the military has been defensive due to the nature of the strategic threats to Sri Lanka. In the short-term, internal security is considered the main threat to the nation's future. In the long-term, the threat is seen as primarily external from current and future superpowers in their rival quests for dominance of the Indian Ocean; at one point these were the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. However, due to collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the external threats now involve future superpowers India and China. The signing of the Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord eased these concerns.

The military of Sri Lanka has received a significant amount of military aid from the People's Republic of China. Throughout the period from 2005 onwards, as a symbol of goodwill and cooperation between the two countries in terms of security, China has supplied the Sri Lankan army with Chinese military equipment. Weapons provided by China include small arms, tanks, and howitzers, as well as mobile vehicles. This can be seen as China's attempt to gain leverage against other power blocs, mainly India, within the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka also imports high-tech weapon systems from Israel.