{"id":92251,"date":"2019-08-15T14:34:37","date_gmt":"2019-08-15T21:34:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=92251"},"modified":"2019-08-15T14:34:37","modified_gmt":"2019-08-15T21:34:37","slug":"sri-lankans-up-in-arms-over-us-military-pacts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2019\/08\/15\/sri-lankans-up-in-arms-over-us-military-pacts\/","title":{"rendered":"Sri Lankans Up in Arms Over US Military Pacts"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Sudha Ramachandran Courtesy\u00a0 The Diplomat<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

A proposed Status of Forces Agreement with the the US is stirring up political controversy in Sri Lanka <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Sri<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

An honor guard made up of Sailors attached to the USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) and a Marine attached to Fleet Antiterrorism Security Team Pacific display the colors as the ship arrives in Colombo, March 26, 2016.Image Credit:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Timothy Hale<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two defense cooperation agreements between the United States and Sri Lanka, the already signed Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) and the under-negotiation Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), are triggering concern, criticism, and controversy in the Indian Ocean island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Neither pact is new. SOFA was first signed in 1995. Apparently, the United States asked Sri Lanka for a new pact and sent a draft to the Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs in August 2018.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The agreement under discussion appears aimed at streamlining clearance procedures for visiting U.S. military personnel,\u201d Nilanthi Samaranayake, director of strategy and policy analysis at CNA, a non-profit research organization in the Washington area, told The Diplomat<\/em>.Enjoying this article?<\/strong> Click here to subscribe for full access. Just $5 a month.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to a leaked copy of the U.S. draft<\/a>, which was reproduced in Sri Lanka\u2019s Sunday Times<\/em> on June 30, American security forces and civilian personnel of the U.S. Department of Defence (DoD), as well as U.S. contractors and their non-Sri Lankan employees who may be temporarily present in Sri Lanka in connection with ship visits, training, exercises, humanitarian activities, and other activities\u201d will have privileges, exemptions, and immunities\u201d equivalent to those accorded to administrative and technical staff of a diplomatic mission. They would be authorized to wear uniforms while performing official duties and to carry arms while on duty.\u201d U.S. identification would be sufficient for their entry into and exit from Sri Lanka; that is, they would not need a Sri Lankan visa to enter the country. U.S. vessels, vehicles, and aircraft would be allowed to exit and move freely within the territory of Sri Lanka\u201d and be free from boarding and inspection\u201d by Sri Lankan security personnel. The United States also wants exemption from licenses, customs duties, taxes, and other charges within Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A section of Sri Lankan analysts and some members of the opposition in Parliament have described the proposed SOFA as a very serious infringement<\/a> on the country\u2019s sovereignty.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Located near the southern tip of India and to the southwest of the Bay of Bengal, Sri Lanka\u2019s strategic significance<\/a> stems from its location in the Indian Ocean. Just 6-10 nautical miles south of Sri Lanka runs the East-West shipping route, through which ply over 60,000 ships carrying two-thirds of the world\u2019s oil and half of all container shipments.  Additionally, Trincomalee in eastern Sri Lanka is among the finest natural harbors in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is not surprising, then, that Sri Lanka has emerged as a major battleground for influence between big powers. Given its proximity to India, Delhi considers Sri Lanka to be part of its sphere of influence and has opposed strategic rivals from expanding their influence in the island. Despite this, over the past decade, China\u2019s presence in Sri Lanka has grown manifold. Beijing\u2019s growing role in Sri Lanka \u2014 it has managed to secure a 99-year lease over Hambantota port, among other things \u2014 stems from its need to protect its economic and strategic interests in the Indian Ocean. As for the United States, its interest in Sri Lanka has mounted along with China\u2019s growing clout in the island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, a section of Sri Lankan analysts believe that should the U.S. lose its naval base in Diego Garcia, it will require an alternate base<\/a>. That could be Sri Lanka.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is in this context that some of the opposition to ACSA and SOFA should be seen. This has led to apprehensions that these pacts could pave the way for a U.S. naval base in Sri Lanka, even turn the island into an an American military colony<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dismissing such allegations as blatant misinformation,\u201d U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Alaina B. Teplitz tweeted that there is no plan or intention to establish a U.S. base<\/a> in Sri Lanka.\u201d The Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), as the Americans like to refer to SOFA (perhaps to make the American forces\u2019 stay in Sri Lanka appear temporary), she said, aimed at facilitating bilateral cooperation and would fully respect the sovereignty of Sri Lanka.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SOFA establishes the framework for U.S. military personnel visiting Sri Lanka at the invitation of the government, and is designed to address a number of red tape issues<\/a>,\u201d Teplitz said in a subsequent interview. Citing the example of the 2017 floods, when the Sri Lankan government sought American help, Teplitz said that relief supplies were delayed on account of bureaucratic red tape. The proposed pact, she said, would facilitate timely supply of such relief in future emergency situations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told Parliament that SOFA was still under discussion<\/a> and that his government would not sign an agreement that impacted the sovereignty of Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Sri Lankans remain skeptical. Part of the problem is that there is little information<\/a> in the public domain\u201d on the agreements\u2019 specifics.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As John Gooneratne, a former ambassador in the Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, pointed out, although ACSA and SOFA have figured frequently in Sri Lanka\u2019s mainstream and social media in recent months, there has not been talk about ACSA and SOFA\u2019s\u201d contents. Rather, it has been about using these pacts as a stick to beat up the government,\u201d he told The Diplomat<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fuelling suspicion over SOFA\u2019s contents and implications for Sri Lanka is the surreptitious manner in which ACSA was renewed. First signed in 2007, ACSA expired on March 5, 2017 and was renewed on August 4, 2017.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Broadly, ACSA allows the United States and Sri Lanka to transfer and exchange logistics supplies, support, and refueling services, either in kind or at cost during peacekeeping missions, humanitarian operations, or joint exercises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Critics point out that Sri Lankan officials were in an inordinate hurry to get ACSA renewed. It was rushed through Cabinet<\/a> even before commanders of the armed forces could provide their views on the pact. If ACSA\u2019s text was indeed harmless\u201d and not a danger to the country,\u201d as claimed by the then-Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera, why was the text of the pact kept secret? Besides, only a truncated Sinhala version of the original draft that was provided to members of Cabinet. Annexes were not included. Why was the full text kept away from them?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although ACSA promises the United States and Sri Lanka reciprocal\u201d rights, it is hard to ignore the fact that in effect it is an arrangement that benefits the U.S.<\/a> far more than Sri Lanka. Unlike the United States, which has a heavy military presence in the Indian Ocean and is thus likely to seek Sri Lankan support, Sri Lanka, with its limited naval and military capacity, is hardly likely to require use of American military facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under fire for the secrecy surrounding the signing of ACSA, Wickremesinghe sought to reassure Parliament in June by saying that the 2017 ACSA is the same as that signed a decade ago. It was renewed without making changes<\/a> to its contents,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the 2007 ACSA was eight pages long, unlike the 2017 pact which runs into 83 pages. While the 2007 document permits U.S. military vessels to anchor in Sri Lanka ports on a one-off\u201d basis, the 2017 ACSA appears to be open-ended<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The question is whether Sri Lanka\u2019s long-term security and other interests will be served by signing these pacts with the United States. In the event of hostilities between the United States and China or Iran, SOFA would invariably draw Sri Lanka into a conflict where it may not want to take sides. After all, Colombo has no bilateral quarrels with Iran or China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Proponents of SOFA and ACSA both in Sri Lanka and the United States would like to see the deals signed and sealed as soon as possible. This may not be easy, as there is strong opposition to the pacts in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan government itself is deeply divided on the matter. While the pro-U.S. Wickremesinghe and his United National Party would like to see SOFA signed swiftly, President Maithripala Sirisena, who heads the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), has expressed his opposition to the defense pacts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interestingly, when ACSA was signed in 1995, the SLFP was in power, as it was when SOFA was signed in 2007. That provides the present government with the leeway to proceed with the pacts,\u201d according to Gooneratne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a few months Sri Lanka will vote in presidential elections. So it is vote-catching time and into this [electoral] game has fallen ACSA and SOFA, Gooneratne says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

National security is expected to figure in the election campaigns of the candidates. Indeed, potential candidates and their parties are already articulating positions on ACSA and SOFA, with an eye on their vote base.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What position will Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna\u2019s candidate in the presidential election, take on ACSA and SOFA?  It was Gotabhaya, then Sri Lanka\u2019s defense secretary, who signed ACSA in 2007. The Rajapaksa family\u2019s strong ties with the Chinese are well-known. Gotabhaya\u2019s stand on ACSA and SOFA will be closely watched in Washington, Beijing, and New Delhi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The likelihood of Sri Lanka and the United States reaching agreement on SOFA may seem  bleak at the moment given the strong opposition to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, as Samaranayake points out, proposed defense pacts with the U.S. tend to stir controversy initially. This happened with India, for instance, when the U.S. was pursuing pacts relating to logistics and communications. New Delhi eventually concluded these agreements,\u201d she observes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This could be the case with Sri Lanka as well, especially once the political campaigning is over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Sudha Ramachandran is an independent journalist\/researcher based in Bangalore, India. She writes on South Asian political and security issues.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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