The Chief of the Indian Air Force, Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, has begun a three-day official visit to Sri Lanka, opening his programme on Tuesday with a floral tribute at the Indian Peace Keeping Force Memorial in Battaramulla, NewsFirst and Ada Derana reported.

Air Chief Marshal Singh arrived at Bandaranaike International Airport on Monday evening and will remain in the country until May 21, according to the Sri Lanka Air Force. He was accorded a Guard of Honour at Air Force Headquarters before an official meeting with the SLAF Commander, the two sides reviewing the bilateral defence relationship and ongoing training cooperation. He subsequently called on the Deputy Minister of Defence and the Defence Secretary.

Over the remainder of the visit, the Indian Air Force chief is scheduled to pay homage at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic in Kandy and to hold separate meetings with the Commanders of the Sri Lanka Army and the Sri Lanka Navy. The visit, the SLAF said, was organised “to further strengthen the longstanding security cooperation and mutual friendship” between Sri Lanka and India.

The wreath-laying at the IPKF Memorial is a recurring element of senior Indian military visits to Colombo, commemorating the more than 1,200 Indian soldiers killed during the IPKF’s 1987–90 deployment in Sri Lanka’s north and east. The visit comes against the backdrop of a deepening defence track that has included a recent multi-ministry Northern Province marine-protected-area initiative pairing Defence with Environment, and renewed Indian Ocean self-defence framing from senior naval voices.

The Air Chief Marshal subsequently addressed Sri Lanka’s National Defence College on May 20 on the strategic imperative of “Air Power in the 21st Century,” The Island reported on Sunday citing ANI. Sharing details on X, the Indian High Commission said he discussed the evolving dynamics of modern warfare and the need for robust bilateral military partnerships in the Indian Ocean Region with the NDC Commandant and course participants. The lecture is described as a central fixture of the three-day visit, which followed the fourth edition of the IN-SLN DIVEX bilateral diving exercise conducted in Colombo from April 21-28.

Sources: NewsFirst; Ada Derana; The Island.