Sri Lanka Walks Diplomatic Tightrope After Iranian Warship Attack Near Galle

· Free Press Journal

Colombo: Sri Lanka found itself at the centre of geopolitical intrigue this week as opposition leaders alleged that unseen global forces might be trying to drag the island nation into the widening Iran–US–Israel conflict, even as the government struggled to maintain strict neutrality after a deadly naval incident just off its coast.

About The Controversy

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The controversy erupted after the Iranian warship IRIS Dena was torpedoed by a US submarine within Sri Lanka’s Exclusive Economic Zone, 19 nautical miles from the southern port city of Galle. The attack killed at least 87 Iranian sailors and left the island nation dealing with the consequences of a conflict being fought thousands of kilometres away. Even before the full details of the tragedy emerged, Sri Lanka’s opposition began raising suspicions in Parliament.

'US Will Bitterly Regret': Iran's Foreign Minister Condemns Torpedo Attack On IRIS Dena Frigate In Indian Ocean That Killed Over 80 Sailors

Opposition MP Chamara Sampath Dassanayake warned it might not have been accidental. “It is possible that an interested party is deliberately trying to draw Sri Lanka into the conflict,” he said, without naming the suspected actor. National Freedom Front leader and former minister Wimal Weerawansa went further, questioning whether President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s government had come under pressure from the US over the handling of another Iranian naval vessel, IRIS Bushehr, which sought help over engine trouble.

Weerawansa pointedly noted that Sri Lanka had fortunately not signed the controversial Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with the United States — an agreement that would have allowed US naval vessels to dock and receive logistical support at Sri Lankan ports. Another opposition MP, Dayasiri Jayasekara, urged the government to remind global powers that the United Nations had declared the Indian Ocean a “Zone of Peace” in 1971, following a proposal originally put forward by Sri Lanka.

US Releases Dramatic Footage Of Iranian Warship IRIS Dena Being Torpedoed

In a televised address, President Dissanayake reiterated that Sri Lanka would remain neutral. “We will not allow our land, territorial waters or airspace to be used against any country,” he said, adding that the government’s actions were guided by humanitarian obligations under international law. Yet the episode has left Sri Lankans deeply uneasy. For weeks, the island had worried about rising oil prices and the safety of migrant workers in the Gulf as the Iran–US–Israel conflict intensified.

Few imagined that the violence itself would spill into Sri Lanka’s waters. Now, with a sunken warship, dozens of dead sailors and a damaged Iranian vessel under its care, Sri Lanka finds itself navigating not just the Indian Ocean — but the treacherous currents of global power politics. The country is now dealing with the logistical challenges of handling bodies, survivors and delicate diplomatic negotiations over repatriation.

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