Sri Lanka has made it clear that India does not supply arms to the strife-torn island nation, saying that it understood New Delhi "political compulsions" in this regard.
"We have good relations with India. If India can supply arms to us then we do not have to go anywhere. We understand New Delhi's political compulsions," Si Lankan army chief Sarath Fonseka said.
His comments came days after a high-level Indian delegation comprising National Security Adviser M K Narayanan, Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and Defence Secretary Vijay Singh visited Sri Lanka in a closely-guarded trip, sparking speculation in the media that New Delhi may supply arms to Colombo.
Fonseka, who was interacting with foreign correspondents at the military headquarters here yesterday, said India was already training 800 Sri Lankan officers every year free of charge.
While Sri Lanka has been buying arms from Pakistan and China, it has not succeeded in procuring them from India.
In reply to another question on whether India would be permitted to provide its own elaborate security arrangements for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Colombo for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation summit in August, Fonseka said all heads of state had their own security during such meetings.
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