Sri Lanka: The security problems of a small state

The objective of this study is to consider the security aspect of Sri Lanka in historical perspective and in the context of its neighbors. The securit y aspect is also discussed in the light of ethnic conflict. Small states li ke Sri Lanka need new and multi-dimensional approaches to old practices esp ecially when a country's very survival is at stake. Lacking a militarily ad equate physical size and an ability for flexible defense, a small state has to rely on strategic insights, skills and tactics to outwit the aggressor. Above all, a well-defined strategy for national security should receive th e highest priority in the nation's political agenda. The choices before a small state confronted by a powerful regional power, s eeking to fill a vacuum left by a colonial hegemon, are limited and intrins ically unpalatable. Small states like Sri Lanka will need to keep their dip lomatic options open as to wide a range of influences as possible without C ommitting themselves to any single course of action. What is required is no t a systematic linkage, but a partial one. Regional groupings are, by and l arge, the least disadvantageous, if not most desirable, for small states. Despite the massive disorientation in India's foreign policy stemming from the winding down of Cold War tensions, and the fading away of her links wit h the former Soviet Union with the latter's dissolution, links which had be en the pivot of India's foreign and defense policies since the late 1960s - all of India's neighbors in South Asia will continue to face the common pr oblem of a relationship in which every possible calculation is weighted in favor of India and against her smaller neighbors.