Sri Lanka has issued a stark warning that the international rules‑based order is deteriorating, with rising conflict and massive spending on weapons overshadowing basic human needs.
Addressing the international community, the government expressed deep alarm over fighting in West Asia and the ripple effects felt far beyond the region.
“Sri Lanka remains deeply concerned by the conflicts in West Asia and by the heavy cost being borne far beyond the region,” it said, as quoted by the Daily Mirror.
Deteriorating world order
The island nation asserted that the international system that has guided relations between nations for decades is showing clear and accelerating signs of breakdown.
It noted that rules once meant to apply equally to all states are now selectively enforced.
Moreover, long‑standing agreements are ignored or discarded, while institutions built to prevent conflict and protect vulnerable people are increasingly paralyzed by division.
Nations and groups act more often in their own interest rather than for the common good, it added.
Sri Lanka cautioned that continued instability in West Asia carries consequences far beyond the region, including direct impacts on its own security, economy, and social fabric, compounded by its location in the Indian Ocean and the large number of Sri Lankans working across affected areas.
It pointed out that resources that could feed children or provide medicine and education are instead poured into weapons and military build-up.
Humanity over division
Against this backdrop, Sri Lanka called for a different path and presented itself as a small island nation that refuses to abandon compassion.
Pointing to a March rescue operation, where it assisted sailors from a vessel linked to conflicting parties in distress near its waters, the nation reaffirmed its stance.
“While safeguarding our neutrality, we placed humanity above all else.
“As President Disanayaka has reiterated, ‘we will never hesitate to protect humanity. If there are actions that must be taken to protect human lives, we will not hesitate to take them under any circumstance,” the country stated.
Sri Lanka emphasized that humanity’s ability to care for one another must expand more rapidly than its capacity to inflict damage.
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Law, dialogue and ceasefire
Sri Lanka insisted that international law, including international humanitarian law, must be respected by all sides.
It asserted that dialogue remains the only viable path forward.
Meanwhile, it also expressed being “pained” by developments in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Reaffirming recognition of Palestine as a state since the 1980s, Sri Lanka said it firmly supports an independent sovereign Palestinian state alongside Israel within pre‑1967 borders.
The Sri Lankan government welcomed the United Nations Security Council’s call for halting hostilities and stressed that relief supplies must move without obstruction.
“Humanitarian assistance must reach civilians without obstruction,” the government demanded, adding that Gaza’s recovery and reconstruction should be treated as an urgent priority.
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