President Ranil Wickremesinghe addressing the ‘Shilpa Abhimani 2023’ Presidential Handicraft Awards ceremony held yesterday at the Sirimavo Bandaranaike Memorial Exhibition Center in Colombo said that the Sri Lanka Navy will be deployed to fight the activities of the Houthi rebel groups in the Red Sea.
The President said there that due to the activities of the Huthi rebels, the operations of commercial ships in the Red Sea have been disrupted and therefore Sri Lanka has agreed to send a Sri Lanka Navy ship to the Red Sea to join the international forces fighting against it.
“Against the background of two wars in Ukraine and Gaza, the activities of the Houthi rebels in the Red Sea are hindering international shipping. Due to that situation, if the merchant ships have to avoid the dangerous areas of the Red Sea and go around South Africa, the price of goods may rise even in Sri Lanka. Shipping has already stopped due to Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea. Therefore, we have agreed to send a ship of the Sri Lanka Navy to the Red Sea to support its security against Houthi activities,” the President said.