KAMALIKA PIERIS
USA made its future
military plans clear to those listening in Sri Lanka. At the Galle Dialogue
2017, Admiral Scott Swift, Pacific Fleet
Commander said they look forward to the
expansion of our military to military relations. It was necessary to build
trust and cooperation to address multilateral challenges. With [certain] realities creeping into the Indian
Ocean, maintaining the Indian Ocean as a sea of tranquility seems increasingly
problematic.
Addressing the 3rd Annual Colombo Air Symposium, October 2017, United
States Air Force Major General James Eifet called for increased partnership and
information sharing among nations in the Indo-Pacific region in the face of a
nuclear threat from North Korea. It was
not only USA, the Republic of Korea and Japan who were at risk from a possible
missile attack but also other countries
in the region. Sri Lanka was also
within the range of an attack by
ballistic missiles from North Korea, he said.
IN 2017, President
Sirisena thanked the US for
resuming training of Sri Lankan armed force members, and urged the US to
increase technical training to naval
officials. The Institute of National Security Studies Sri Lanka (INSSSL)
briefed a delegation from the Young Alakai Warriors of the U.S. Army Pacific on
Security Challenges of Sri Lanka in the Next Decade” in 2017.
The US Army’s
Pacific Region Head Gen. Robert B.Brown made an official visit to the Island in
July 2018. He met Chief of Defence
Staff. Gen. Brown’s visit was aimed at strengthening military cooperation and
mutual friendship and thus deepening the US-South Asia understanding. Lengthy
discussions took place on how the US Army can assist the Sri Lankan Army on
disaster management activities and as to whether the Sri Lankan Peace Keeping
Mission can get international training. Gen Brown also admired the professional
competency of the Sri Lankan Army on demining.
A 17-member
delegation of the United States Land Forces in the Pacific Command arrived in
Sri Lanka for participation in ‘Land Forces Pacific Programme’ sessions In
April 2018. There were preliminary
discussions which addressed issues related to matters of interest to the US
such as security cooperation. They also exchanged views on current developments
in the region and other matters of mutual interest and concern.
Dr. Geoffrey F. Gresh, Department Head of International Security
Studies – National Defense University in Washington, D.C and Associate
Professor at the College of International Security Affairs (CISA), paid a
courtesy call on Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Admiral Ravindra C.
Wijegunaratne in June 2018. He was
accompanied by LTC Douglas Hess, Defence attache, US Embassy. A cordial
discussion was held between the delegates on matters of mutual interest and
cooperation. The two officials also discussed matters related to Indian Ocean
Security dynamics and maritime security cooperation in the region.
Army
Commander Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake attended the US Army’s ‘LANPAC
Symposium and Exposition’, organized by the Institute of Land Warfare in
Honolulu, Hawaii, in June 2018. This
annual world-class international forum of military intellectuals highlighted
this year, the role, and contribution of land forces in the Indo-Pacific
theatre. The theme was ‘The Future of Land Force Integration; Multilateral
Approaches across the Indo-Pacific’.
Lieutenant
General Senanayake also called on US Army Commanding General, Pacific Command,
General Robert B. Brown and discussed several issues of concern as well as
matters relating to continuing defence cooperation. Senanayake
was also among the invitees to a special banquet, hosted by General Brown. Lieutenant
General Senanayake’s retinue to Hawaii included Military Assistant to the Army
Commander Colonel K.A.A. Udaya Kumara and Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM)
Warrant Officer I.W.M.S.P. Wijesinghe, perhaps for the first time in the Army
history in a Commander’s entourage”.
United States will provide nearly $300 million in security
assistance to improve security relationships across the Indo-Pacific region,
including Sri Lanka, Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo announced at the ASEAN
Regional Forum in August 2018. The security assistance funding will cover
projects in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Mongolia, Nepal, the Pacific Islands, the
Philippines, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and others, in the areas of Maritime Security,
Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HA/DR), Peacekeeping Operations and
Countering Transnational Crime..
As part of the maritime security theme, we launched the Bay of
Bengal Initiative to help enhance the capacity of civilian and military
maritime actors in this vital region, which is home to important sea lanes
linking the Indian Ocean to East Asia. Under the Bay of Bengal Initiative, the United States will ‘work with other
partners in the Bay of Bengal, including Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to enhance
the capacity of civilian and military maritime actors in the Indian Ocean Region
to improve the target areas of detection, information-sharing, and response to
emerging threats.’
In August 2018 the U.S. Department of State announced that it
would provide approximately $39 million in Foreign Military Financing for Sri
Lanka, pending Congressional approval.”We look forward to discussing with
the Government of Sri Lanka how this contribution can support our Bay of Bengal
initiative and Sri Lanka’s humanitarian assistance and disaster response
priorities”, it said in a statement.
In May 2018, a delegation from the House Armed Services Committee
of the U.S. Congress visited Sri Lanka. The House Armed Services Committee, a
standing committee of the United States House of Representatives, is a powerful
Committee, responsible for the supervision of armed forces and the Department
of Defence. The delegation was led by its Chairman Mac Thornberry.
The visit was to find out ways of strengthening defence
cooperation between Sri Lanka and USA.
President Sirisena told the delegation that he greatly appreciated the
defense training provided by the US, such as the joint military exercises
carried out by US and Sri Lanka. Such programmes should continue for security
purposes.
United States Air Force Airmen from across the Indo-Pacific met
with their Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) counterparts at the SLAF Headquarters in
Colombo IN 2018 for ‘Airman to Airman’ talks. The two groups focused on
enhancing regional security, future training opportunities and exercises geared
toward strengthening interoperability and professional military education
opportunities for both SLAF and USAF airmen.
According to Maj. Gen. Eifert the engagement was very successful.
At the two-day meeting both sides gained valuable information to share with key
decision makers. The information would help both forces strengthen their bonds
and bolster interoperability. “The
SLAF did an outstanding job of communicating their needs and priorities which
we are able to take back to HQ PACAF. It was a great opportunity to be here and
improve the Sri Lanka, U.S. relationship,” Eifert said.
The US paid much attention to the navy.A Sri Lanka Marine Corps
was set up with US help in 2017. The U.S. Coast Guard handed over a
high endurance cutter, formerly the USCGC Sherman, to the Sri Lankan Navy in
August 2018 at Honolulu. The cutter, a gift from the people of the United
States, will be the largest ship in the Sri Lankan fleet. It measures 115
meters long and when fully staffed carries a crew of 167 The ship will increase
Sri Lanka’s ability to patrol its Exclusive Economic Zone, providing additional
security for ships from all nations that transit the busy sea lanes of the
Indian Ocean.
For seven
decades from the end of the World War II, the US Seventh fleet dominated the
Pacific area . After Yahapalana
victory, ships of the 7th Fleet, visited Sri Lanka regularly.
The first US navy ship to arrive was Blue Ridge’, in March 2016. When Blue Ridge came, the US ambassador said that this would be the
first of many to come. They would like to bring more of their Seventh Fleet to
Sri Lanka.
The USNS ‘Fall River’, a transport ship of U.S. Pacific Fleet arrived at the Port of Hambantota in March
2017 to engage in the first Pacific
Partnership goodwill mission. Chief of US Pacific Fleet, Rear Admiral
Gabrielson was present at the launch.
Admiral
Gabrielson said Sri Lanka was selected as the first of four nations for the
2017 Pacific Partnership programme because Sri Lanka government had made the
request. Hambantota area was selected out of about 48 areas proposed. It takes a lot of effort to build trust and
credibility. This exercise will make it easier for us to help each other when
the unthinkable happens,” said Gabrielson.
100 US,
Japanese and Australian marines
including 60 air borne US marines and navy personnel participated.
SLNS Samudura (formerly of the US Coast Guard) joined the 10-day
exercise.
The Pacific Partnership medical teams will join Sri Lankan doctors
and nurses for training at the General Hospital and Nurses Training School in
Hambantota, the Tissamaharama Base Hospital and other local clinics and
hospitals. Free public medical and dental clinics in select cities will also be
conducted by mission doctors and nurses, said the press release.
The activities would include free community health clinics, school
and hospital renovations, learning exchanges for medical and disaster-relief
responders, seminars to promote women’s roles in peace and security and public
performances by the U.S. 7th Fleet Band. Local
organizations, working together with U.S. Navy civil engineers, will complete renovations of the Ambalantota
Divisional Hospital, Wishaka Mahila Preschool, Sri Gunananda Preschool and
multiple Maternity and Child Clinic Centres.
The U.S. 7th Fleet Band
held joint public concerts at the Galle Fort, Tangalle City Centre,
Hambantota Beach Park , Bata Atha Agro Park, Matara Beach Park and several
schools in the area. Television news showed the Pacific Partnership team
attending a pinkama at Ambalantota
Sunadararamaya.
Thereafter, US guided missile destroyer USS Hopper arrived on a
goodwill visit in January 2017. It conducted training for the Sri Lanka navy and also played
cricket, baseball, volley ball and basketball with them.
USS
‘Comstock’ arrived for a four day
training workshop at Colombo harbour in March 2017. ‘USS Comstock’ is part of
the 7th fleet. The training will be to enhance skill sets and strengthen relations between the
two militaries. This is the
third such military-to-military exchange between U.S. Sailors and Marines and
their Sri Lankan counterparts in the past 12 months, the authorities observed,
‘and this will form the basis of further cooperation between our militaries.’
Approximately
325 U.S. sailors and marines joined 175 participants from the Sri Lankan Navy
and Marine Corps as part of this exchange. Training focused on the movement and logistics support needed to successfully
conduct humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations.
US marines showed the Sri Lanka Marine Corps,
procedures for life-saving skills, convoy operations, humanitarian assistance,
disaster relief training and amphibious vehicle familiarization. Thereafter members
of the U.S. Embassy, including U.S. Ambassador joined this group in donating
toys and renovating children’s dormitories at the School for the Deaf and Blind in Ratmalana.
Amphibious
transport dock USS Anchorage (LPD
23), and the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) arrived at Trincomalee Port
in August 2018. Anchorage, is part of the Essex Amphibious Ready Group (ARG),
and is deployed to the 7th fleet area of operations to support regional
stability, reassure partners and allies and maintain a presence postured to
respond to any crisis from humanitarian assistance to contingency operations.
The US was interested
in trying out the air logistics hub
concept which utilizes Sri Lanka’s strategic location in the Indian Ocean to
ensure the quick availability of relief supplies, equipment and other material
when needed by the US and partner militaries and humanitarian organizations. “The Sri Lankan navy, host nation
support team and the U.S. Embassy have provided tremendous assistance and
cooperation in developing the first temporary air logistics hub concept in Sri
Lanka, said Anchorage officials.
Anchorage aims not only to enhance security cooperation, but to
build understanding of the HADR (humanitarian assistance, disaster relief)
capability that contributes to disaster, along with sharing of best practices
and enabling more efficient joint relief efforts in the event of a future
disaster.
Additionally, sailors and marines will conduct training in visit,
board, search and seizure, security force reaction techniques with the Sri
Lankan Navy and Marines. There will also be damage control training. The US
Navy damage control program is the best. The visit is also an opportunity for
US Seventh Fleet to explore local logistics support services for visiting naval
forces operating throughout the Indo-Pacific region.
During the visit, sailors and marines will have opportunities to
meet with their counterparts during exercises with the Sri Lankan Navy and
marines. Approximately 300 Sri Lankan naval academy midshipmen and 40
distinguished visitors, will tour Anchorage to learn about the ship’s
amphibious capabilities.
The visit
offers US sailors and marines the opportunity to explore the local area and
meet their counterparts during exercises with the Sri Lankan Navy and Marines,
the statement said. “In addition to the professional exchanges, Sailors
and Marines will take part in sporting events, including baseball, soccer,
basketball and volleyball.
“Our Navy and Marine
Corps team is deeply committed to continuing to strengthen our partnership with
the Sri Lankan armed forces,” Sailors and Marines are focused on
completing a successful mission and representing America in Sri
Lanka. “These ship visits help demonstrate the value of the growing
U.S.-Sri Lanka partnership,”
The USS Anchorage also joined the Sri Lankan naval ship Suranimila
to conduct an exercise at sea. The exercise allowed the ships to improve
crews knowledge and strengthen a wide variety of seamanship skills critical to
operating throughout a free and open Indo-Pacific region. During the
exercise, multiple ships sailed information to practice communications and
maneuvering procedures. In addition to the Anchorage and Suranimila, two
landing craft air cushions (LCACs), one AH-1Z Cobra helicopter, and one UH-1Y
Huey helicopter participated. .”
“The Anchorage team and I had an incredible time in
Trincomalee and we are proud to be serving alongside the Sri Lankan Navy,”
said Captain Dennis Jacko, Commanding Officer of the USS Anchorage.
“Not only do we increase our proficiency in communications, but we
continue to build on a strong and lasting partnership with the Sri Lankan
Navy.” This was part of a growing U.S.-Sri Lanka naval partnership.
USA’s Nimitz
Carrier Strike Group visited
Colombo in October 2017. These carriers
are used for offensive operations. The Group included the USS Nimitz, the
cruiser USS Princeton, destroyers USS
Howard, USS Shoup, USS Pinckney, and USS Kidd. USS Nimitz is a super
carrier of the United States Navy, and the lead ship of her class. It is one of the largest warships in the
world. It is more than 23 stories high from the keel to the top of the mast and
is approximately 333 meters long. It can accommodate more than 5,000
personnel . This was the first aircraft carrier to visit since1985. It was parked
150 nautical miles off Colombo. It was too large to enter Colombo port.
The visit was given a PR look. I’m
delighted that U.S. sailors will have the chance to visit Sri Lanka, meet with
its wonderful people, and take part in public service activities at schools,
hospitals, and rest homes that will improve the lives of Sri Lankans of all
ages,” said the U.S. Ambassador to Sri
Lanka. While in port, sailors will also work with local non-profit
organizations to support community service events at a local hospital, an
orphanage, and other sites.
The local
media kept very quiet about this visit. Foreign newspapers did not. Asia
Times had a paragraph on the event,
starting with the headline ,‘US sends super carrier USS Nimitz to Sri Lanka in flag-showing visit
aimed at China’ . This is what Asia Times
said.
‘The US Navy, against a backdrop of quickening
relations between Sri Lanka and China, is sending the USS
Nimitz to make the first port call by a US aircraft carrier to the Indian Ocean
nation in more than 30 years. The huge carrier will dock in Sri Lanka’s port of
Colombo on Saturday for three days , in the first such visit since the
mid-1980s. USS Nimitz and its escorting warships are currently one of three US
carrier strike groups operating in the western Pacific. The show of force is a
US response to continuing tensions with North Korea over its nuclear weapons
program. The Nimitz’s flag-showing exercise in Sri Lanka also seems designed to
counter a growing Chinese presence in the strategic nation’.
The U.S. Navy
hospital ship USNS “Mercy”
arrived in Trincomalee on April 25 to conduct the 2018 Pacific Partnership
mission.” Pacific Partnership is
the largest annual multilateral Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief
(HA/DR) preparedness mission conducted in the Indo-Asia-Pacific. It aims to
enhance regional coordination in areas such as medical readiness and
preparedness for disaster situations. Personnel
from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Peru,
and Japan took part in this year’s programme working side-by-side with Sri
Lankan medical professionals.
This year’s Sri Lanka stop was similar to 2017’s mission. U.S. and
partner nation service members joined
their Sri Lankan counterparts in civil engineering projects, humanitarian
assistance and disaster relief (HA/DR) readiness training, and public outreach
throughout the local community. ” they conducted a range of activities for schools, hospitals, community
centres and locals in and around the Trincomalee district.
The USNS Mercy” contains 12 fully-equipped operating rooms, a 1,000
bed hospital facility, digital radiological services, a medical laboratory, a
pharmacy, an optometry lab, a CAT-scan and two oxygen producing plants. The
ship is equipped with a helicopter deck capable of landing large military
helicopters.
US and Sri
Lankan surgeons conducted the world’s first ever robot-assisted surgery aboard
the USNS Mercy. The team
successfully completed a cholecystectomy, or gall bladder removal, on a Sri
Lankan citizen using a Da Vinci XI Robot Surgical System. This was the first
time I have ever operated aboard a ship,” said Dr. Vyramuthu Varanitharan, a
general surgeon at the Muttur Base Hospital.
During the ship’s stay, USN doctors along with Lankan doctors
performed 24 varying surgeries onboard, out of which the robotic surgery
performed onboard was the 1st in the world.
They also treated over 5,500 patients conducting medical clinics at
various locations in and around Trincomalee in addition to over 500 veterinary
surgeries and vaccinations.
There were also special
musical performances presented by the US 7th Fleet Band partnering with the Sri
Lanka Navy in a blend of US-Sri Lankan music genres. From medical clinics to
free public concerts, our sailors will bring the best of America to local
communities.
In august
2018 a joint humanitarian assistance mission called Pacific Angel, sponsored by the US Pacific Command (USPACOM)
concluded at the Alagalla School in Vavuniya, The mission operated in Vavuniya,
Anuradhapura and Sigiriya. The purpose
was to provide humanitarian civic assistance and carry out civil-military operations
in the Pacific region.
Medical
treatment was provided by Pacific Air Forces doctors, including representatives
from the Bangladesh Air Force, Maldivian Defence Force, Nepal Army, and Sri
Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Medical/Dental officers and nurses. Medical teams
treated 3,000 patients the services included primary health care, physical
therapy, optometry and dentistry. Vavuniya
Nursing School students and Red Cross officials participated. A forum
highlighting topics such as modern engineering practices in disaster management
and renovation was also held for SLAF civil engineers and technicians. School
buildings were also renovated.
The U.S. Navy
and Marines and Sri Lankan Navy and Marines launched the annual Cooperation
Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) exercise in Trincomalee in October
2107. US navy added Sri Lanka to the list of CARAT
partners for the first time in 2017, as part of ‘our larger efforts to expand both
bilateral and multilateral maritime security engagement across the Indo-Pacific
region’. CARAT is entering its twenty-third year, and Sri Lanka is among the
newest CARAT partner nations, demonstrating a shared commitment to
maritime security in the Indian Ocean.’
CARAT Sri
Lanka 2017 is part of a series of bilateral CARAT military exercises between
the U.S. Navy and the armed forces of Bangladesh, Brunei, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, the Philippines and Thailand. U.S.
Navy participation in CARAT Sri Lanka
2017 included Commander Task Group 75.5, Coastal Riverine Group 1, Underwater
Construction Team 2 and U.S. Marines with Fleet Antiterrorism Security Team
Pacific.
The week-long
exercise focused on maritime security
skills and operational cohesiveness among participating forces. CARAT
training encompasses small boat operations, evidence collection, diving
procedures, and anti-terrorism security. It also builds relationships
between military participants through community development projects, sports,
and social events.
There were several joint navy exercises. I will list them chronologically. The world’s
largest international maritime warfare exercise (Rim of the Pacific – RIMPAC)
took place in the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California in June/August 2018.
.Sri Lanka
took part in the biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) maritime exercise 2018
held in Hawaii and Southern
California in June 2018. This was the
first time Sri Lanka was participating
in this exercise. RIMPAC 2018
was an American led combined live field training exercise that included
operational and tactical level training. The Sri Lanka team also had a week of
Field Training Exercise and similar training engagements with Royal Australian
Navy Marines and US Marines in Townville, Australia.
The many exercises conducted during RIMPAC included the training
on the operations of an assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard. Participants gained
firsthand knowledge on how rescue operation are conducted, how victims are
brought to the ship and transferred to the ICU. A Sri Lanka media team joined other
international media in documenting the exercise.
In July 2018
The Joint Combined Exchange Training (JCET) exercise between US Naval Special
Warfare Forces personnel and Sri Lanka naval personnel from the 4th Fast Attack
Flotilla (4FAF) and Special Boat Squadron (SBS) was inaugurated at the Special
Boat Squadron Training School (SBSTS) in Trincomalee. The programme is held
annually as part of a mutual understanding and agreements for the training and
support requirements of both countries. The four – week course focused on
developing professional skills and exchange of knowledge among naval personnel
of US Naval Special Warfare Forces and Sri Lanka Navy.
The third
KDU-CNA Track 1.5 Dialogue on Naval cooperation was held in July 2018 at the
Faculty of Graduate Studies, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University
(KDU).The two-day dialogue was a collaborative initiative between KDU and the
Center for Naval Analysis (CNA), USA. The KDU-CNA Track 1.5 Dialogue is a
one-of-a-kind discussion that we organize at KDU, facilitating interaction
between the navies of Sri Lanka and the United States, along with the
participation of relevant academics.
This year’s Track 1.5 Dialogue focused on how
bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and the USA could be further improved in
a variety of spheres and how the global security concerns are influencing the
relations between the two countries.
Track 1.5 diplomacy is an initiative to bring
together government and non-governmental actors to discuss on a variety of
topics that could improve the bilateral relations of countries. As such, this
two-day deliberation witnessed the participation of analysts and academics
along with naval officials from the navies of both participating countries for
a discussion. Held under the Chatham House Rule, this year’s Dialogue included
four main sessions, with the 5th and final session being a wrap-up session with
the speakers providing forward-looking, implementable suggestions for Sri Lanka
and the United States. ( continued)
