Armed forces strength: NPP reiterates Ranil’s plan

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, in his capacity as Defence Minister, last week reiterated his government’s commitment to downsize the Army to 100,000 by 2030. Dissanayake, who is also Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, declared that the strength of the Navy and the Air Force, too, would be brought down to 40,000 and 18,000, respectively, by 2030. That commitment was made in Parliament on 28 Feb.

In May 2023, the then State Defence Minister Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon declared that the strength of the Army, the Navy and Air Force would be brought down to 100,000, 30,000 and 20,000, respectively. Obviously, the NPP defence team has amended the proposed Navy and Air Force strength by 2030, though the incumbent government accepted the overall plan.

Declaring that national security wouldn’t be compromised by the move, State Minister Tennakoon told the writer that wartime numbers couldn’t be sustained well over a decade after the conclusion of the conflict. At the time Matale district lawmaker disclosed the move, UNP leader and President Ranil Wickremesinghe also held the Defence portfolio.

In late May 2023, the Defence Ministry quoted Tennakoon as having assured US State Department official, Afreen Akhter, that the security forces would be ‘right-sized’ to perform their classic roles.

In the Biden administration, Afreen Akhter oversaw Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and the Maldives, as well as the Office of Security and Transnational Affairs.

A few years after the conclusion of the war, in May 2009, the Mahinda Rajapaksa government quietly began downsizing the Army, which was little above 200,000 at the time the war was brought to an end. However, the Wickremesinghe-Rajapaksa government officially acknowledged the downsizing of the war-winning Army on 13 January, 2023. The Defence Ministry quoted Tennakoon as having said that the Army strength would be further reduced to 135,000 by the end of 2024 and 100,000 by 2030.

Of course there cannot be an issue over the need to gradually decrease military strength in peace time, taking into consideration post-war national security requirements and the pathetic economic situation confronting the country.

Regardless of the developing political-economic-social crisis, it would be the responsibility of the military top brass to brief the political leadership of the ground situation. Post-war national security requirements shouldn’t be looked at only on the basis of economic indicators. That would be suicidal. In other words, the country is in such a precarious situation, political leadership may tend to conveniently ignore basics, especially to please various interested parties eternally complaining about the military strength, thereby jeopardizing the country’s national security.

Declaration that the SLA would be reduced to 100,000 by 2030 means the total strength would be cut by half, from its peak.

The LTTE couldn’t have been defeated if not for the rapid expansion undertaken during the then Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka’s tenure as Commander of the Army (2005-2009). The SLA lacked the wherewithal to sustain a large-scale ground offensive while deploying sufficient troops on a holding role. For want of adequate infantry battalions, the SLA couldn’t undertake large scale offensives in different theatres, simultaneously. But the rapid expansion, since the launching of operations on multiple fronts, in Vanni, from 2007, paid dividends soon enough.

A question of loyalty

Many eyebrows were raised when President Anura Kumara Dissanayake declared his intention to build a professional military that is loyal to the State rather than individuals. The Commander-in-Chief said so in Parliament on 28 Feb. The JVPer was referring to the celebrated war-winning military that proved to the world that terrorism could be eradicated. Let me also emphasize that the military defeated the JVP twice in 1971 and 1987-1990, and thereby saved parliamentary democracy, whatever shortcomings therein.

Incumbent Defence Secretary Air Vice Marshal (retd.) Sampath Thuyakontha who had served as the wartime Commanding Officer of the famed number 09 Mi- 24 attack helicopter squadron and Deputy Defence Minister Maj. Gen. (retd.) Aruna Jayasekera should be able to address any concerns of the NPP and JVP.

A retired armed forces grouping played a significant role in the NPP’s triumph at the presidential and parliamentary polls last year. AVM Thuyakontha appeared on the NPP stage as a key speaker and sustained his campaign in spite of the Wickremesinghe-Rajapaksa government’s efforts to harass him. The Island stood by Thuyakontha’s right to take a political stand, though the majority of his retired colleagues threw their weight behind the SJB presidential election candidate Sajith Premadasa.

General Shavendra Silva, who retired as the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) recently, hasn’t received seven service extensions, as alleged in Parliament.

Gen. Silva having received appointment as Army Commander during Maithripala Sirisena’s tenure as President on 19 Aug., 2019, he thereafter received three extensions in 2020 (Sirisena), 2021 (Gotabaya Rajapaksa) and 2022 (again Gotabaya Rajapaksa) though he was replaced by Lt. Gen. Vikum Liyanage on 01 June, when he was elevated to the position of Chief of Defence Staff. As the CDS, Silva received tenures (terms) in line with the CDS Act and served four Presidents (Sirisena, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Ranil Wickremesinghe and Anura Kumara Dissanayake).

Gen. Silva of the Gajaba Regiment who served as the Commander of the Army during the first phase of Aragalaya (31 March-14 July, 2022) was appointed CDS on 01 June, 2022. At the time protesters overran Janadhipathi Mandiraya on 09 July, 2022, Lt. Gen. Vikum Liyanage served as the Commander of the Army.

The public shouldn’t forget how the Army thwarted the JVP-inspired march on Parliament in the wake of Gotabaya Rajapaksa hastily leaving Janadhipathi Mandiraya thereby averting a major catastrophe. Had the Army failed, Sri Lanka would have ended up like Bangladesh, the country created in 1971 from what was formerly East Pakistan with a myriad of problems; being battered by periodic natural disasters, widespread poverty and overburdened by a population of over 100 million with a limited landmass, however was developing rapidly under Premier Sheik Hasina having had good relations with both India and China, when she was toppled by a Western funded Aragalaya type movement there.

It would be pertinent to mention that regardless of various accusations that had been made over the years ,the armed forces loyally served successive governments that battled both Northern and Southern terrorism. The police and its paramilitary wing, the elite Special Task Force (STF), too, made significant contributions towards the eradication of Northern and Southern terrorism. Of course there had been incalculable miscalculations, failures, shortcomings and excesses during both campaigns but the armed forces triumphed over the enemies.

Our armed forces earned the respect of other countries and currently serve under UN command though the treacherous Yahapalana government betrayed them at the Geneva-based Human Rights Commission in Oct. 2015. There had never been any question over the professionalism of our armed forces in battlefield or on the high seas as Mahinda Rajapaksa’s government gradually rolled back the LTTE units from west to east and trapped elusive LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran on the banks of the Nanthikadal lagoon.

It would be pertinent to mention that the JVP had been a key member of the UNP-led coalition that also included one-time LTTE ally Tamil National Alliance (TNA) that supported the then retired General Sarath Fonseka’s candidature at the 2010 presidential election.