During the trip, he met with the President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath, Deputy Minister of Defense Maj. Gen. (retired) Aruna Jayasekara, Secretary to the Ministry of Defence Air Vice Marshal (retired) Sampath Thuyacontha, Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy Vice Adm. Kanchana Banagoda, Commandant of the National Defence College Maj. Gen. Chamila Munasinghe, and U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung to discuss shared security challenges, collaboration on maritime domain awareness and disaster response, and military cooperation. 

Paparo visited Sri Lanka Navy Ship (SLNS) Vijayabahu, demonstrating the strong commitment to enhancing security cooperation and the partnership with the Sri Lanka Navy. Vijayabahu is one of three former U.S. Coast Guard cutters transferred to the Sri Lanka Navy which are now being used to combat transnational crime, support humanitarian and disaster response efforts, and uphold Sri Lanka’s sovereignty in the Indo-Pacific. A fourth cutter is expected to be delivered in early 2026. In October 2024, the U.S. also transferred a Beechcraft King Air maritime patrol aircraft to provide key capabilities for the Sri Lanka Air Force and Navy to patrol its own waters, counter maritime threats, and secure vital trade routes in the Indian Ocean. 

Sri Lanka plays a critical role in the Indian Ocean, fostering partnerships between nations and industries to better address threats, optimize operations and protect essential trade routes. In January 2025, Sri Lanka assumed command of multinational maritime training Combined Task Force 154, one of five operational task forces under Combined Maritime Forces, headquartered in Manama, Bahrain. CTF 154 conducts multinational maritime training at locations across the Middle East and organizes training events around five core areas: maritime awareness, maritime law, maritime interdiction, maritime rescue and assistance, and leadership development. 

Further enhancing people-to-people ties, Paparo spoke to Sri Lankan & foreign military students at the National Defence College and laid a wreath at the Cenotaph World War Memorial, a site dedicated to military personnel killed in action during WWI and WWII. 

For the more than 75 years since Sri Lanka claimed its independence, the partnership between the U.S. and Sri Lanka has contributed to security, stability, and prosperity in the region.    

USINDOPACOM is committed to enhancing stability in the Indo-Pacific region by promoting security cooperation, encouraging peaceful development, responding to contingencies, deterring aggression and, when necessary, prevailing in conflict.