The ‘Know Your Region’ series is designed to support unit and individual professional military education on the Indo-Pacific region.

Military Capability

Sri Lanka announced at the start of 2023 that it would cut its military by a third to cut government costs by 2024 with plans to reduce the military further by 2030. With the country in an extreme economic downturn and military member pay accounting for around half of the total government payroll, extreme cuts were deemed a necessity. The military has been given the task of being a much smaller, but technically and tactically sound fighting force. Sri Lanka’s military peaked in 2019 at over 300,000 people. Its Army is now estimated to have around 135,000 staff and is planned to reach 100,000 by the end of the decade. This may see Sri Lanka partner with other larger nations to provide them with increased security and assurity in the region. The exact composition of the Sri Lankan Military is unknown, particularly as it undergoes significant downsizing.

For further information on Sri Lanka’s Military, see the resources below:

Articles:

  1. Armed forces personnel, total – Sri Lanka | Data (worldbank.org)
  2. Sri Lanka to slash military by a third to cut costs | Military News | Al Jazeera
  3. 2023 Sri Lanka Military Strength (globalfirepower.com)
  4. Sri Lanka Army
  5. Ministry of Defence - Sri Lanka

Videos:

  1. Sri Lankan Armed Military On Streets As Curfew Extended (youtube.com)

Military Co-Operation with Australia

Australia and Sri Lanka celebrated 75 years of diplomatic relations in 2022 and held a commemorative service to remember the Commonwealth military members who lost their lives defending Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in World War Two. For this celebration, both HMAS Adelaide and HMAS Anzac visited Sri Lanka. Australian Defence personnel also participated in military training in Sri Lanka during Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2023. Transnational crime is a large focus of collaboration between the two militaries. It is expected that Sri Lanka-Australian ties will increase in the future as Australia deepens ties in the South Asian region. 

For further information on Sri Lankan military co-operation with Australia, see the resources below:

Articles:

  1. The Sri Lanka High Commission – Canberra, Australia (slhcaust.org)
  2. An underwater cultural exchange | Defence
  3. Honouring 75-year partnership with Sri Lanka | Defence