 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations .(December 2019) |
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| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | 1999 |
| Jurisdiction | Sri Lanka |
| Agency executive |
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 Sri Lankaportal |
The National Security Council (NSC) of Sri Lanka is the executive body of the Sri Lankan government that is charged with the maintenance of national security with authority to direct the Sri Lankan military and Police.
The National Security Council established in June 1999 by an Gazette notification, by President Chandrika Kumaratunga following the military set backs in Operation Jayasikurui taking over direct control of the military from her cousin General Anuruddha Ratwatte, the deputy defense minister. The NSC came to national attention following the 2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings, in which Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe claimed that although a member, he was not invited to NSC sessions chaired by President Maithripala Sirisena following the 2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis. [1]
| Chairperson | President | Anura Kumara Dissanayake |
|---|---|---|
| Statutory Members | Prime Minister | Harini Amarasuriya |
| Minister of Defence | Anura Kumara Dissanayake | |
| Secretary to the Ministry of Defence | Air vice-marshal (Retd.) Sampath Thuyacontha | |
| Chief of the Defence Staff Commander of the Army Commander of the Navy Commander of the Air Force Inspector General of Police | General Shavendra Silva Lieutenant General Vikum Liyanage Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana Vacant | |
| Appointed Members | Personnel appointed by the President Chief of National Intelligence Director, SIS |
Anura Kumara Dissanayake appointed Cabinet Minister of Law and Order as an Advisor to the President on National Security, which was stylised by media and other government departments [3] as National Security Advisor. However as the title is not a codified or established government position, the advisor is not an ex-officio member of the National Security Council.
Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga , commonly referred to by her initials CBK, is a Sri Lankan politician who served as the fourth executive president of Sri Lanka, from 12 November 1994 to 19 November 2005. She previously served as the prime minister from August to November 1994 and the chief minister of the Western Province from 1993 to 1994. She is the country's first and only female president to date and the country's second female prime minister. She was the leader of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) until the end of 2005.
Ranil Wickremesinghe is a Sri Lankan politician who served as the ninth President of Sri Lanka from 2022 to 2024. Previously, he served as Prime Minister of Sri Lanka from 1993–1994, 2001–2004, 2015–2019 and in 2022. He held several ministerial roles, including Minister of Finance, Minister of Defence, Minister of Technology and Minister of Women, Child Affairs and Social Empowerment. Wickremesinghe has led the United National Party (UNP) since 1994 and has been Prime Minister of Sri Lanka on six occasions.
The Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the supreme legislative body of Sri Lanka. It alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all other political bodies in the island. It is modeled after the British Parliament. The 16th Parliament of Sri Lanka was dissolved on 24 September 2024.
The National Security Council is a federal institutional and consultative body chaired by the Prime Minister of Pakistan as its chairman. The NSC is a principal forum that is mandated for considering national security and foreign policy matters with the senior national security advisers and Cabinet ministers. The idea and inception of National Security Council was first conceived in 1969 under the President Yahya Khan, its functions were to advise and assist the president and prime minister on national security and foreign policies.
The National Security Council (NSC) of India is an executive government body tasked with advising the prime Minister of India on matters of national security and foreign policy. It was established by the former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee on 19 November 1998, with Brajesh Mishra as the first National Security Advisor.
The Sri Lanka Air Force is the air arm and the youngest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. It was founded in 1951 as the Royal Ceylon Air Force (RCyAF) with the assistance of the Royal Air Force (RAF). The SLAF played a major role throughout the Sri Lankan Civil War. The SLAF operates more than 160 aircraft.
Field Marshal Gardihewa Sarath Chandralal Fonseka is a retired Sri Lankan army officer. He was the eighteenth Commander of the Sri Lankan Army, and under his command the Sri Lankan Army ended the 26-year Sri Lankan Civil War in 2009, defeating the militant group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam; he thereafter briefly served as the Chief of Defence Staff. After retiring from the Army with the rank of General, he entered politics as the common opposition candidate in the 2010 presidential election contesting against President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
The Ministry of Defence is the cabinet ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for implementation of government defence policy and acts as the overall headquarters of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces.
General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) located at Kandawala, Ratmalana, Colombo, is the state defense university of Sri Lanka which is administered by the Ministry of Defense.
The Department of Civil Security is an auxiliary force administered by the Ministry of Defence.
In Sri Lanka, the Cabinet of Ministers is the council of senior ministers responsible and answerable to the Parliament of Sri Lanka. The President is a member of the cabinet and its head.
Sri Lanka Police is the civilian national police force of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. The police force is responsible for enforcing criminal and traffic law, enhancing public safety, maintaining order and keeping the peace throughout Sri Lanka. The police force consists of 43 Territorial Divisions, 67 Functional Divisions, 432 Police Stations with more than 84,000 people. The professional head of the police is the Inspector General of Police who reports to the Minister of Law and Order as well as the National Police Commission. The last Inspector General of Police was Deshabandu Tennakoon.
A Governor of a Province in Sri Lanka, is the head of the provincial council and representative of the President of Sri Lanka in the province. Established in 1987, under the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka and deriving its powers from the Provincial Council Act No 47 of 1987, a governor exercises executive power in respect of subjects devolved to provincial council.
The Sri Lanka Armed Forces is the overall unified military of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka encompassing the Sri Lanka Army, the Sri Lanka Navy, and the Sri Lanka Air Force; they are governed by the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The three services have around 346,700 active personnel; conscription has never been imposed in Sri Lanka. As of 2021 it is the 14th largest military in the world, with 1.46% of the Sri Lankan population actively serving.
Ajith Nivard Cabraal is a Sri Lankan accountant and politician who was also the 16th Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. He is also the former State Minister of Finance, Capital Markets and State Enterprise Reforms and a national list member of parliament since 12 August 2020. He served as the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, holding the post from 1 July 2006 until his resignation on 9 January 2015. He again became the Governor of Central Bank of Sri Lanka in September 2021, replacing W. D. Lakshman, and resigned again in April 2022.
The Prime Minister of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the most senior member of parliament in the cabinet of ministers. It is the second-most powerful position in Sri Lanka's executive branch behind the president, who is the constitutional chief executive. The Cabinet is collectively held accountable to parliament for their policies and actions. The powers and functions of the Prime Minister has changed several times since the creation of the office in 1947.
General Anuruddha Leuke Ratwatte, frequently referred to as Anuruddha Ratwatte, was a Sri Lankan politician and army officer. He was a Cabinet Minister and Deputy Minister of Defence.
Naseer Ahamed is a Sri Lankan politician serving as the Governor of the North Western Province, Sri Lanka. Naseer Ahamed has been active in Sri Lanka's political scene since 1994, having held various positions such as Cabinet Minister of Environment, Member of Parliament from the Batticaloa district, Chief Minister of the Eastern Province and more.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces is the ultimate commanding authority of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces, an executive role vested in the President of Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka officially does not have a role for a national security advisor. However, President Ranil Wickremasinghe in 2022 appointed former Cabinet Minister of Law and Order Sagala Ratnayaka as a Presidential Advisor on National Security. The President's Media Unit of the Presidential Secretariat and several other government departments stylised as NSA, as did the White House. The NSA does not hold an ex-officio seat in the National Security Council as it is not a codified position.