COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — India’s defence minister, Rajnath Singh, will arrive in Sri Lanka on Tuesday for a three-day official visit, leading a high-level delegation for talks aimed at strengthening the two countries’ defence and maritime partnership.
The visit, from Sept. 8 to 10, will be a rare one at the ministerial level: Mr. Singh is set to become the first Indian defence minister to visit Sri Lanka in nearly four decades. The last such visit was by K.C. Pant, who served as defence minister under Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, in 1988.
Mr. Singh had been scheduled to visit Sri Lanka once before, in September 2023, but the trip was called off on the eve of his departure. India’s Ministry of Defence said at the time that the visit had been deferred because of “unavoidable circumstances” and that Mr. Singh remained committed to strengthening bilateral cooperation.
Three years later, the rescheduled engagement comes as India and Sri Lanka continue to expand a defence relationship that encompasses military training, maritime security, capacity building and exchanges between their armed forces.
Mr. Singh will hold consultations with Sri Lanka’s leadership on a range of issues and meet members of the Indian community in Colombo, the Indian government said Sunday. He will be accompanied by senior officials from India’s ministries of defence and external affairs.
The government did not immediately provide a detailed itinerary or identify the Sri Lankan leaders Mr. Singh would meet.
India played a central role in supporting Sri Lanka during its economic collapse in 2022, extending about $4 billion in credit lines and other assistance as severe shortages of foreign currency left the island struggling to pay for fuel, food, medicines and other essential imports.
India was also among the first countries to provide assistance to Sri Lanka following Cyclone Ditwah in 2025, an intervention New Delhi has cited as an example of its role as a first responder in the region.
The Indian government said Mr. Singh’s visit would further strengthen the countries’ “traditionally strong and friendly bilateral relations,” particularly their maritime and defence partnership.
Mr. Singh’s visit will conclude Thursday
