The Colombo Defence Seminar 2018 : ‘Security in an Era of Global Disruptions’

COLOMBO (News 1st) - The Defence Seminar organized by the Sri Lanka Army for the 8th consecutive time, commenced in Colombo on Thursday (August 30). The “Colombo Defence Seminar 2018” will be held as a two-day forum at the BMICH in Colombo under the theme: ‘Security in an Era of Global Disruptions’ A distinguished gathering including High Commissioners, Ambassadors, security directors, military heads and defense advisors representing 38 countries attended the summit. President Maithripala Sirisena addressed the gathering via a prerecorded statement. Army Commander Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake speaking at the occasion stated that military forces are generally regarded as the first respondents to deal with any crisis situation and that due to the nature and extended connectivity of non-traditional security threats, a solution to these problems cannot be found within the national boundaries of a single state. Defence Secretary, Kapila Waidyaratne said that societies have continuously been disrupted by social tensions that have emerged due to global trends, challenging governance and changing nature of power. Waidyaratne noted that economic development and political stability are too primitive to assure the security of a nation in today's context. Waidyaratne also continued to say that the prosperous and politically stable nations are the countries that face the greatest threats by non-state actors and that these challenges are multi-dimensional and unpredictable. Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe who also graced the occasion stated that the economic progress of the developing world will largely depend upon the national strategies that are adopted to closely integrate into productive economic endeavors while smartly avoiding the counterproductive engagement. Wickremesinghe also said that it is essential to apply the best practices approach to reduce national vulnerabilities immediately, and to develop robust cybersecurity systems to prevent disruptions by attackers, through the collaboration of all nation states. "Entering into International agreements to underpin international energy trading relationship should be another timely consideration" added the PM. It is interesting to note that Ukrinmash in Ukraine and Norinco from China; two arms suppliers are the sponsors for the Colombo Defence Seminar 2018.