Editor’s Note: The following article is based on the remarks delivered by INDOPACOM Commander Admiral Samuel J. Paparo at the National Defense College, Sri Lanka, yesterday, 20 March 2025. His address covered key strategic perspectives on regional security, military cooperation, and the evolving defense landscape in the Indo-Pacific. The insights presented here reflect Admiral Paparo’s observations and the broader implications for national and international security.
The Indo-Pacific isn’t just vital to our militaries; it’s the engine of global prosperity. These waters carry over half of the world’s trade, and the security environment we shape today will determine the nation’s future generations.
What happens in these oceans aren’t separate theaters, but an interconnected security environment across the Pacific, the Indian Ocean, in fact, all seas.
Let’s be direct about our challenges. Nations’ assertive behavior threatens regional stability and international norms, directly affecting freedom of navigation vital to commerce. We see increased military cooperation among authoritarian nations creating strategic challenges that demand immediate attention, and this is why strengthening democratic partnerships is imperative.
Transnational threats—terrorism, weapons proliferation, trafficking, piracy—erode security and prosperity daily, often not making the headlines. And yet also, the technological revolution is transforming maritime security. Artificial intelligence, soon quantum computing, and hypersonics are fundamentally altering operations at sea. Those who master these technologies will shape the future.
The United States commits to responsible innovation while authoritarian regimes pursue capabilities, perhaps without ethical constraints. Today’s battlespace extends beyond traditional domains. Potential adversaries weaponize information as space-based capabilities transform everything from communications to maritime monitoring.
In fact, Sri Lanka’s key position at the crossroads of the Indian Ocean is strategically vital. These shores border key sea lanes that connect the Pacific to the Indian Ocean to all seas. And this geography allows Sri Lanka to influence maritime activities crucial to the entire Pacific.
I recognize the outstanding contributions Sri Lanka has made to international security—from peacekeeping missions, demonstrating professionalism, to leadership in Combined Task Force 154, a point of particular pride for me, to the vital role in Operation Prosperity Guardian, protecting freedom of navigation. This leadership showcases values and capabilities that make Sri Lanka an essential partner.
Your leadership is important, your voice is important, as is your professionalism, and our partnership is important for the entire region’s future.
Security is not about hardware or technology; it’s about trusted partnerships that are based on mutual respect. And that’s why this relationship between the United States, Sri Lanka, and the other partners in the room—Saudi Arabia, Oman, and like-minded partners—is absolutely critical. We back our commitments with action, with shared intelligence capabilities, with joint and combined exercises, with professional military education, with advanced technology partnerships, and we together deliver real security results. We all recognize that securing these vast waters requires collaborative effort from all regional partners committed to peace and stability.
It’s not about choosing sides; it’s about building a region where all nations exercise sovereign rights without intimidation and where dialogue resolves disputes. The challenges are formidable, but so is our determination, together.
We will ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific, and not just for ourselves, but for nations to come.
