India successfully halted a planned joint naval exercise between Pakistan and Sri Lanka in the strategic waters off Trincomalee after raising strong objections with the Sri Lankan government.

The exercise, which was scheduled to take place just weeks before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka, was viewed by Indian officials as a deliberate move by Pakistan to assert its presence in a region where India has significant strategic and economic interests, especially given the ongoing development of an energy hub at Trincomalee involving Indian investment and a new tripartite agreement with the United Arab Emirates.

Trincomalee, located on Sri Lanka’s north-eastern coast, is of immense strategic value for India, as it has the potential to dominate the Bay of Bengal and the north-eastern Indian Ocean.

Indian concerns were further heightened by the close cooperation between the Pakistani Navy and China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy, with China’s growing influence in Sri Lanka already a longstanding source of tension for New Delhi.

This comes against the backdrop of Sri Lanka’s imposition of a one-year moratorium on foreign research vessels, a move largely prompted by the activities of Chinese surveillance ships, which have previously docked at Sri Lankan ports and triggered diplomatic friction with India.

Upon learning of the planned Pakistan-Sri Lanka drill, the Indian High Commission in Colombo swiftly conveyed New Delhi’s reservations to Sri Lankan authorities. India emphasised its security stakes in the region and its unease over any military activity by Pakistan or its allies near Trincomalee.

As a result, the Sri Lankan government quietly cancelled the exercise, despite objections from the Pakistani side. There was no official comment from Indian or Sri Lankan officials regarding the scale or timing of the planned drill, but sources confirmed the cancellation was directly linked to Indian diplomatic intervention.

This development coincides with a significant strengthening of India-Sri Lanka defence ties.

During Prime Minister Modi’s recent visit, the two countries signed their first-ever defence cooperation agreement, marking a major step forward since India’s involvement in Sri Lanka’s civil war in the 1980s. The pact is expected to lead to more structured defence collaboration, joint exercises, and potential defence industry partnerships.

Additionally, India, Sri Lanka, and the UAE signed a tripartite agreement to develop the Trincomalee energy hub, including a multi-product pipeline and further development of the historic oil tank farm, reinforcing India’s economic and strategic footprint in the region.

India’s assertive stance on the cancelled naval drill underscores its determination to counterbalance Chinese and Pakistani influence in its maritime neighbourhood and to safeguard its interests in the Indian Ocean. The episode also highlights the increasingly complex security dynamics in South Asia, where port visits and military exercises are closely watched and often become flashpoints for regional rivalry.

Agencies