Conduct of the annual ‘Defence Seminar’ by the Army has benefited the defence establishment as well as the country in many ways and opened new avenues for close cooperation and exchange of our warfare experiences with foreign partners, most of who knew only a little about the conduct of humanitarian operations, so said the Commander of the Army Lieutenant General Daya Ratnayake at the media briefing, held Wednesday (13) evening to brief on arrangements as regards the forthcoming ‘Defence Seminar - 2014’ during August 18 - 20.
Elaborating on how the annual event saw its birth in the year 2011 after elimination of terrorism from Sri Lanka, the Commander said that the annual event has now found a niche for itself in the global calendar of international forums, as evident by the increased numbers of participants in it every year. 197 foreign participants, 35 Defence Attachés excluding 18 spouses and more than 40 diplomats representing 66 countries are expected to attend those sessions, the Commander announced.
“A total of 20 guest speakers, including 10 foreign scholars are billed to share their views, related to the topic, ‘Sri Lanka: Challenges to a Rising Nation’ through which the participants could receive an overall picture of the country’s onward march to be the Wonder of Asia,” the Commander added.
In view of the importance of learning more about the country’s forward march in the context of her economic stability and social stability, this year’s seminar is to accommodate more and more experts from the civil sector. Accordingly, Dr P.B. Jayasundara, Secretary to Treasury, Ministry of Finance is to deliver the keynote address at the inaugural session, joined by Hon. Minister of External Affairs, Prof G.L Peiris, Chief Guest, Mr Lalith Weerathunga, Secretary to the President, Dr Sarath Amunugama, Deputy Minister of Finance and a few other state officials, Lieutenant General Ratnayake said.
“In any country, the military represents only 25% of the security concerns and the rest is managed by other civil organizations, related to various aspects of security. Therefore, gathering of their views as well as perspectives is an advantage for betterment while simultaneously exposing ourselves to friendly foreign military organizations worldwide. In fact, many countries are sending their military officers for training with us and likewise they are offering us training opportunities, all thanks to sound relations and understanding that we have cultivated,” the Commander underlined.
Responding to media queries, the Commander opined that this year’s seminar could enable foreign visitors to gather a glimpse of the degree of development that we have achieved in the post-conflict Sri Lanka within a span of 5 years. It is the Secretary Defence Mr Gotabaya Rajapaksa who has been the guiding star behind realization of the entire project and the support we receive from our sponsors is encouraging. As in previous years, on the sidelines of the main sessions, a mini exhibition of military hardware and accessories will be on display, he added.
Lieutenant General Ratnayake also appealed the media to assess the deliberations of the sessions in an analytical perspective and project in a positive manner, so that the world would gather correct perceptions of the country’s progress.
Major General Prasad Samarasinghe, Chief of Staff, Brigadier Ralph Nugera, Director Training, Brigadier Ruwan Wanigasuriya, Military Spokesman and Brigadier Jayanath Jayaweera, Director Media at Army Headquarters were associated with the briefing at Sri Lanka Electrical and Mechanical Engineers Mess Hall at Colombo 2.
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