Pathfinder Foundation and Australian High Commission co host Tri Lateral Roundtable

Pathfinder Foundation and the Australian High Commission in Colombo co-hosted a Track 1.5 Trilateral Roundtable titled “Sri Lanka-India-Australia: Maritime Neighbours and Partners”.

The event at the Australian High Commission brought together key stakeholders and experts to discuss pressing maritime security issues in the region. The programme commenced with a welcome address by H. E. Paul Stephens, Australian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, followed by introductory remarks by Ambassador (Retd.) Bernard Goonetilleke, Chairman, Pathfinder Foundation.  

Ms. Karen Radford, Assistant Secretary North and South Asia, Department of Defence, Australia, who is on an official visit to Colombo, cantered her remarks around “Australian perspectives in the Indian Ocean Region and Defense’s Approach”, providing insights into the Australian National Defence Strategy (2024) and emphasizing the importance of international partnerships. She also reiterated Australia’s continuous commitment to building Sri Lanka’s sovereign capabilities in light of prevailing security challenges through training, sharing information and exchange.   

The roundtable focused on three broad topics. Future security challenges in the Indian Ocean Region and response options, covering traditional and non-traditional threats as well as issues relating to multilateral cooperation and governance, were presented by the Ambassador (Retd.) Pankaj Saran, Convenor of Natsrat India; Regional architecture with maritime security remit was addressed by Admiral (Retd.) Jayanath Colombage, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the Republic of Indonesia and former Foreign Secretary; and Maritime Domain Awareness with a special focus on opportunities for trilateral cooperation in maritime aerial surveillance and regional cooperation for hydrography by Dr David Brewster, Senior Research Fellow, Australian National University.