Since the beginning of this year, India has provided $ 2.4 billion in assistance to Sri Lanka to help it cope with its economic collapse.

Even though both the floating dock and the Dornier aircraft have been discussed bilaterally for some time, their signing a fortnight ago was not officially confirmed until Tuesday

Sri Lanka's Ministry of Defence has issued a media clarification about recent defence agreements it has signed with India that neither side has officially announced.

"The recently signed maritime security pacts with the Government of India will neither result in hindrance nor threat to the national security of Sri Lanka, as misinterpreted by several print and electronic media," said a press release by the Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence.

Even though both the floating dock and the Dornier aircraft have been discussed bilaterally for some time, their signing a fortnight ago was not officially confirmed until Tuesday.

"The receipt of Floating Dock Facility from the Government of India at no cost has been projected to reduce the annual outlay of Rs. 600 million for outsourced docking repairs and this proposal has been in the pipeline since year 2015."

Reconnaissance aircrafts like the Dornier are mainly used for maritime surveillance, search and rescue operations, and delivering information to various platforms.

"The unavailability of this capability was the motive for bilateral dialogues between the Governments of India and Sri Lanka during the last couple of years and it was agreed upon to provide one Dornier Reconnaissance Aircraft to Sri Lanka free of charge."

Since the beginning of this year, India has provided $ 2.4 billion in assistance to Sri Lanka to help it cope with its economic collapse.

As of January, India has also signed several key bilateral agreements with Sri Lanka, including joint development of the Trincomalee Oil Tank Farms and three major power projects in the north and east with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and the Adani Group, among other agreements on maritime security.

The assistance India is providing Sri Lanka for better maritime security is consistent with its own efforts to boost Indian Ocean security, regional cooperation, and intelligence sharing, as was underscored at the NSA-level meeting of the Colombo Security Conclave.