Israel's Secret Decades-Long Arms Deals With Sri Lanka Revealed
Translated & summarized from Cursorinfo by baba
Sri Lanka and Israel engaged in a secret, decades-long security partnership involving significant arms deals and military training, despite Sri Lanka's pro-Palestinian political stance. The collaboration, which began in the 1980s, saw Sri Lanka acquire Israeli naval vessels and Kfir fighter jets. Concerns over technology transfer to Iran led to a temporary halt in arms supplies in 2007. The partnership has since been renewed and expanded into areas like cybersecurity, with a major aircraft modernization project underway.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Sri Lanka and Israel maintained a secret security partnership for decades, including major arms deals.
- The collaboration began in the 1980s with Israel supplying arms and training to combat the Tamil Tigers.
- Sri Lanka acquired Israeli naval vessels and Kfir fighter jets, heavily used during its civil war.
- Israel paused arms supplies in 2007 due to fears of technology transfer to Iran.
- The partnership resumed after the civil war and expanded into cybersecurity and aircraft modernization.
- A 2026 project by Israel Aerospace Industries will modernize Sri Lanka's Kfir fighter jets.
Sri Lanka maintained a close security partnership with Israel for decades, including multi-million dollar arms deals and military experience exchanges, despite its public pro-Palestinian stance. This collaboration, detailed in a study by Dr. Ponsara Amarasinghe of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, began in the 1980s when Sri Lanka sought military aid to combat the Tamil Tigers. Israel became a key arms supplier and provided training, with Israeli security advisors arriving in Colombo in 1984 to help train the Special Task Force.
During the 1990s, the partnership expanded significantly with Sri Lanka acquiring Israeli naval vessels, including "Bumblebee" and "Saar-4" class ships, and "Shaldag" class patrol boats. Sri Lanka even began producing its own "Colombo" class vessels based on Israeli designs. In aviation, Sri Lanka purchased seven Kfir fighter jets in 1995 and eight more in 2000, which were heavily used in the civil war. Israeli pilots reportedly flew these aircraft, and Sri Lankan pilots trained in Israel.
As military cooperation grew, Sri Lanka became reliant on Israeli companies for maintenance and upgrades. A notable 2003 deal involved approximately $20 million for new weapon control systems for "Dabur" patrol boats. However, some deals faced accusations of corruption, with former Israeli Minister of Energy and Infrastructure Gonen Segev reportedly attempting to push arms sales on special terms.
A major crisis occurred in 2007 when Israel temporarily halted arms supplies due to fears that its technology could be transferred to Iran, which was supporting Sri Lanka during its civil war. These restrictions lasted until the civil war's end in 2009.
Following the war's conclusion, relations improved, extending into new technological areas like cybersecurity. In 2021, Sri Lanka signed an agreement with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), and IAI began a $50 million project in 2026 to modernize Sri Lanka's Kfir fleet.