I vividly remember boarding the then INS Vikrant — formerly HMS Hercules — with my father during a special port call to Colombo in the 1970s. I was a young boy then, absorbed in a hobby of building model airplanes and ships, especially aircraft carriers. The encounter was unforgettable. It was my first time aboard a carrier — a steel giant that captured both my imagination and my awe.

INS Vikrant, along with INS Udaygiri, was already berthed in Colombo as cyclone Ditwah struck. INS Sukanya soon joined them to strengthen the operation.

So, the announcement that the newly built, fully indigenous INS Vikrant would make its maiden overseas visit to Sri Lanka for the International Fleet Review 2025 and the Sri Lanka Navy’s 75th anniversary celebrations stirred nostalgia. But, only afterward did I fully grasp how fortuitous and meaningful her arrival would prove to be.

Cyclone Ditwah struck Sri Lanka with devastating force, leaving hundreds dead and hundreds of thousands displaced, alongside widespread destruction to infrastructure and housing. This prompted the government to request international assistance. India responded within hours. Humanitarian relief operations under Operation Sagar Bandhu were swiftly mobilised.

By extraordinary circumstance, INS Vikrant, along with INS Udaygiri, was already berthed in Colombo. INS Sukanya soon joined them to strengthen the operation. This marked the third major instance in recent years in which India, guided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Neighbourhood First policy, has stepped forward to support Sri Lanka: First, during the Covid-19 pandemic through the Vaccine Maitri initiative; next, during the economic collapse of 2022, when India extended more than $4 billion in financial assistance; and, now again in 2025, through rapid disaster relief.

On this occasion, an aircraft carrier group — traditionally associated with warfighting or geopolitical signalling — became a platform for humanitarian action, supporting the delivery of emergency supplies, medical assistance, logistical support, and search-and-rescue operations.

These initiatives in Sri Lanka offer India an increasingly relevant model for neighbourhood diplomacy in an emerging multipolar world. The Indo–Lanka relationship has evolved beyond episodic gestures into a form of cooperation that is flexible, responsive, and multidimensional — capable of addressing humanitarian, economic, and strategic challenges simultaneously. The symbolism of INS Vikrant being present during one of Sri Lanka’s gravest moments cannot be overstated.

In global discourse, aircraft carriers are commonly portrayed as instruments of coercion or power projection. In Colombo, however, Vikrant reframed naval capability as an instrument of peace, humanitarian service, and confidence-building. This is soft power supported by hard power — expressed through empathy and pragmatism rather than intimidation.

Post Ditwah, Sri Lanka remains acutely vulnerable. While recovery efforts continue under the IMF programme following the 2022 economic collapse, a disaster of this scale risks reversing fragile stabilisation gains. India’s rapid response has provided critical support to Sri Lanka’s experienced disaster management and military teams, but sustained reconstruction will require broader international engagement, resource mobilisation and investment. India can consider leading a coordinated post-disaster reconstruction and recovery initiative for Sri Lanka, which might also serve as a prototype for future regional cooperation.

In this, Japan can be a natural partner. It is a long-standing development collaborator in Sri Lanka and a trusted strategic partner of India within the Indo-Pacific region. Coincidentally, the 4th India–Japan Forum convenes in New Delhi this weekend, bringing together officials, scholars, and policy thinkers from both countries. Sri Lanka’s rebuilding could become a pilot project demonstrating how India and Japan might work together in the emerging multipolar order- combining strategic coordination with complementary development strengths.

Successive governments and the wider public have expressed profound gratitude for India’s steadfast support during moments of national adversity. The events of the past week have once again underscored the value of a neighbour that responds not with hesitation, calculation, or rhetoric, but with swift and concrete action. As INS Vikrant – symbol of a confident and self-reliant India — transformed from a warship into a humanitarian lifeline, it also signalled the emergence of a new paradigm in regional leadership. If Sri Lanka becomes the testing ground for an India–Japan collaborative model of reconstruction and resilience, it may well mark the opening of a more consequential chapter in Asian strategic cooperation — one shaped not by rivalry, but by responsibility.

(Milinda Moragoda is a former Sri Lankan cabinet minister and diplomat, and founder of the Sri Lankan strategic affairs think tank, Pathfinder Foundation, can be contacted via email@milinda.org -Courtesy Hindustan Times 2025.12.02)

By Milinda Moragoda