Indian naval submarine and Pakistani ship visit Sri Lanka at same time

Colombo: The Indian naval submarine ‘Vagir’, the latest indigenous Kalvari-class submarine of the Indian Navy, on Monday, began its four-day visit to Sri Lanka at the same time a Pakistan naval ship docked here.

The Indian High Commission said its operational visit is to commemorate the ninth edition of International Day of Yoga (IDY) under the theme of "Global Ocean Ring".

The Commanding Officer of the Indian Naval submarine, Commander Divakar. S will call on Commander Western Naval Area, Rear Admiral Suresh De Silva. Further, during the submarine’s visit, the vessel would be open for visitors and school children.

The High Commission of India in coordination with Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre is scheduled to organize a grand event at Colombo Port to celebrate IDY on 21 June 2023 with the participation of senior defence hierarchy and personnel from Indian and Sri Lanka Navies, the mission said in a press release.

The Indian naval ships Delhi, Sukanya, Kiltan, and Savitri have previously visited Colombo.

Visits by Indian Navy ships and submarines in Sri Lanka aim to foster brotherhood and togetherness between the two neighbouring navies in keeping with India’s vision of ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy and ‘Security and Growth for all in the Region (SAGAR)’, the release said.

Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan Navy said ‘Tippu Sultan’, the Pakistani naval ship, also arrived at the port of Colombo on Sunday on a two-day visit.

‘Tippu Sultan’ is a 134.1 metre-long warship manned by a crew of 168 persons, the Navy said.

The Navy said this is the first visit to Colombo by a submarine since a Chinese submarine docked in 2014.