By Shamindra Ferdinando

Contradicting a claim made by US Ambassador Julie Chung the previous day, authoritative sources denied the deployment of an Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) in support of operation ‘Prosperity Guardian’ in the Red Sea to combat Houthis.

Sources were reacting to Ambassador Julie Chung’s declaration on Wednesday that one of the three US Coast Guard Cutters donated over the years to Sri Lanka had been deployed in support of ‘Prosperity Guardian.’

The US envoy’s claim was made at the opening of the third Indian Ocean Security Conference organised by Pathfinder Foundation in Colombo on Wednesday (28). Among the participants were President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Sri Lanka’s former High Commissioner in New Delhi Milinda Moragoda.

Sources said that two OPVs, SLNS Sayura (P 620) and SLNS Gajabahu, formally USCC Sherman (P 626) had been deployed on a special several weeks long mission in the Arabian Sea to intercept vessels carrying narcotics. After the conclusion of the given task, P 626 had returned to Colombo whereas SLNS Sayura, formally Sukanya class patrol vessel of the Indian Navy was on its way back.

Sources said that Sri Lanka lacked the wherewithal to deploy OPVs in a missile and drone operations environment in the Red Sea.The US formed a coalition in December 2024 to meet the growing threat posed by Yemen based Houthis to Red Sea shipping.

US Embassy quoted Ambassador Chung as having told the conference that the Sri Lanka Navy had joined a multinational coalition of naval vessels in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Arabian Sea from over a dozen countries to help safeguard the freedom of navigation and protect the busy sea lanes of commercial ship traffic from Houthi attacks. “This is a clear demonstration of Sri Lanka

playing an active role in helping to secure the global supply chain that benefits both Sri Lanka and economies around the world. Thanking Sri Lanka for this leadership was an important message conveyed during the recent visits of U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Verma, and others.”

Ambassador Chung also made reference to the Verma’s recent declaration in Colombo that a fourth US Cutter would be donated to Sri Lanka.Sources said that the deployment in the Arabian Sea appeared to have been misinterpreted as joining ‘Prosperity Guardian,’ involving US and its allies.