Govt. cautioned on US security pact

Kiriella to reveal Govt. decision at next P’ment session 

Renewal of the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) between the US and Sri Lanka came into the limelight yesterday with Chief Opposition Whip JVP MP Anura Dissanayake cautioning the Government about the impact it would have on national security.

According to the agreement signed in 2007, the US and Sri Lanka will assist each other in military operations. “This is a two-way agreement, but Sri Lanka is not a country which will take its armies around the world. So it is an agreement that gives wider benefits to the United States and such an agreement could hamper our relationships with other countries. The agreement allows US troops to use Sri Lanka – the land, sea and air - during a war and we are to provide them with the necessary infrastructure,” said MP Dissanayake.

ACSA was signed for five years by former Secretary of Defence Gotabaya Rajapaksa with the US Ambassador Robert O. Blake in March 2007. The agreement has allowed the United States and Sri Lanka to transfer and exchange logistics, supplies, support and refuelling services, either in kind or at cost, during peacekeeping missions, humanitarian operations and joint exercises.

Minister of Higher Education and Highways and Leader of the House of Parliament Lakshman Kiriella is expected to reveal the Government’s decision at the next session of Parliament. (AH)