Excellencies,
Sri Lanka welcomes the convening of these informal exchanges in Geneva under General Assembly resolution 80/58, and appreciates the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Republic of Korea for this initiative. We also thank the Office for Disarmament Affairs for organizing this timely and important process in an inclusive manner. We also welcome the Secretary-General’s report A/80/78, which provides a useful baseline for our discussions by reflecting the diversity of views across States, International and regional organizations, civil society and other stakeholders.
Sri Lanka has been strongly advocating for a legally binding instrument to address the challenges and concerns raised by emerging technologies in the area of lethal autonomous weapons systems, in particular through the ongoing and valuable work of the Group of Governmental Experts on Emerging Technologies in the Area of Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (GGE on LAWS), established under the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW). Simultaneously as a main sponsor of the UNGA Resolution on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) and a supporter of the resolution 80/58 which is mandated to convene these informal consultations, Sri Lanka strongly believes that it is essential to ensure complementarity between different discussions on AI in military domain in UN Disarmament machinery. Therefore, it is important to address rapidly growing concerns of AI in Military Domain through well-coordinated centralized UN mechanism at in a non-discriminatory and inclusive approach covering all aspects, including humanitarian, legal, security, technological and ethical perspectives. These discussions should avoid duplications.
As outlined in the UNGA Resolution 80/58, Sri Lanka also support that that ‘international law, including the Charter of the United Nations, international humanitarian law (IHL) and international human rights law, applies to matters governed by it that occur throughout the life cycle of artificial intelligence capabilities as well as the systems that they enable in the military domain’.
While understanding the complex legal challenges posed by AI applications in military domain, Sri Lanka is of the view that the existing international law, particularly the International Humanitarian Law (IHL) should be strictly adhered and any new laws, legal and normative frameworks should be negotiated particularly based on the existing IHL.
Further Sri Lanka supports resolution’s focus ‘on the whole life cycle of artificial intelligence capabilities applied in the military domain, including the stages of pre‑design, design, development, evaluation, testing, deployment, use, sale, procurement, operation and decommissioning’.
While AI is increasingly being integrated into military applications, our discussions regarding its impact are not keeping pace with these advancements. While the AI is mainly integrated into military domain through the autonomous weapons systems, the new and emerging areas including various AI capabilities such as AI Decision Support Systems (AI-DSS), AI Cyber capabilities, integrating AI into nuclear weapons etc need to be broadly discussed.
The application of AI in the military domain raises serious concerns regarding human responsibility, accountability, and the increased risk of miscalculation and escalation of violations. Sri Lanka strongly advocates for human centrality throughout the weapons cycle. We strongly oppose the dehumanization of decision-making and the transfer of life-and-death decisions to machines and algorithms.
Sri Lanka also attaches importance to an inclusive multilateral process that avoids fragmentation, draws on the expertise of international organizations, academia, civil society, and industry, and ensures that all States, including developing countries, can participate meaningfully. Capacity-building and knowledge-sharing in addressing the issues in AI in military domain are especially important if we are to bridge the AI divide and ensure that governance and solutions are both effective and equitable.
During the informal exchanges, Sri Lanka is ready to engage constructively in identifying shared understandings and common landing zones and practical future steps in effectively addressing the issues of AI in military domain.
Thank you.
During the 29th International Meeting of Mine Action National Directors and UN Advisers (29NDM) in Geneva, the National Mine Action Centre (NMAC) of Sri Lanka and the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) co-hosted a side event on 'Ensuring Safe and Credible Land Release: Sri Lanka’s Completion Survey Process and Lessons Learnt' on 24 April 2026.
Speaking at the side event, National Director of Mine Action of Sri Lanka, Eng. Kumudu Lal Bogahawatta, Secretary of the Ministry of Housing, Construction and Water Supply and the panelists from NMAC and GICHD shared updates on Sri Lanka's Mine Action Strategy, Completion Survey Dashboard alongside the progress and challenges of Sri Lanka's Mine Action Programme.
Mr. Chair,
Sri Lanka also joins other in appreciating you and your team for presenting the updated version of the rolling text. We appreciate your continued efforts in incorporating most of the constructive contributions made by the delegations in previous sessions into the rolling text in a consolidated and inclusive approach. We also appreciate your efforts in streamlining the language and structure of the rolling text while retaining the provisionally agreed contents over the previous discussions.
The high-level segment of the Conference on Disarmament commenced in Geneva on 23 February 2026 under the presidency of the Ambassador Omar Zniber of Morocco and will continue till 25 February 2026.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath addressing the Conference via a video message on the first day of the high-level segment, highlighted the importance of a robust multilateral system to overcome the prevailing challenges in the current global landscape to ensure enduring global peace and security to secure a stable world for present as well as future generations.
Ambassador Sumith Dassanayake, Sri Lanka’s newly appointed envoy to the United Nations in Geneva met Ambassador Omar Zniber of Morocco, the current President to the Conference on Disarmament on 19 February 2026 and presented his Credentials as Sri Lanka’s new Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament.
Conference on Disarmament – 27 January 2026
Statement by Her Excellency Himalee Arunatilaka, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in Geneva
Madam President,
Madam Secretary-General
Excellencies, Distinguished Colleagues
It is with deep honour, respect and gratitude that I take the floor today for the last time in my capacity as the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in Geneva, and to the Conference on Disarmament. I will be concluding my tenure and returning to Sri Lanka in a few days on the conclusion of my tenure in Geneva.
- Statement made by Mr. M.M. Nayeemudeen, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Transport, Highways and Urban Development & Director/National Mine Action Centre at the Twenty Second Meeting of States Parties to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention
- Statement made by Mr. M.H.M. Zameel, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Housing, Construction and Water Supply at the Twenty Second Meeting of States Parties to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, 01-05 December 2025
- Statement by Sri Lanka at the Thirteenth Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions, in Geneva, 16-19 September 2025