Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh leaves Sri Lanka this afternoon, closing the three-day official visit that began on Monday — the first by an Indian defence minister in 38 years.
Before departing he travels to Nuwara Eliya for a religious programme at the Seetha Amman Temple, NewsFirst reported. Thushara Rodrigo, Director General of International Security Cooperation and Public Diplomacy at the Foreign Ministry, said the stop is intended to draw on the two countries’ shared connections to the Ramayana. Singh is also expected to meet members of Sri Lanka’s Indian-origin plantation community while in the hill country.
The IPKF question is answered
Our coverage on Tuesday noted that neither Indian nor Sri Lankan reporting had confirmed whether the wreath-laying at the Indian Peace Keeping Force memorial in Battaramulla — listed on the police traffic plan issued for the visit — actually took place.
It did. Hiru News reports that Singh joined in paying floral tributes at the IPKF monument on the Ape Gama premises in Battaramulla on Wednesday afternoon, after meeting President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa earlier the same day. He also attended a programme at the Hunupitiya Gangaramaya Temple on Wednesday afternoon.
A separate service-chiefs meeting
Daily Mirror reports a meeting that neither of the other two outlets carries. A high-level Indian delegation met Deputy Defence Minister Major General Aruna Jayasekara (Retd) at the Ministry of Defence on Wednesday, comprising Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, Vice Chief of the Air Staff; Vice Admiral Ajay Kochhar, Vice Chief of the Naval Staff; Lieutenant General Sandeep Jain, Vice Chief of the Army Staff; and Indian High Commission officials.
The talks covered regional and maritime security, emerging security challenges, disaster preparedness and response, and training and capacity-building. Jayasekara thanked India for its assistance during the Cyclone Ditwah disaster.
That all three Indian service vice chiefs travelled with the minister is a detail none of the coverage of Wednesday’s three defence agreements mentioned.
Sources: NewsFirst, Hiru News, Daily Mirror.
