Lieutenant General Joel Vowell, Deputy Commanding General of US Army Pacific, joined Sri Lankan defence and security representatives and diplomats from five countries at the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in Jawatta, Colombo, to honour service members who died during the First and Second World Wars.
Vowell took part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the cemetery during his three-day visit to Sri Lanka. Representatives from the Australian High Commission, the French Embassy, the Indian High Commission, the Embassy of Japan and the New Zealand High Commission also attended the remembrance ceremony.
The Jawatta cemetery is the final resting place of service members who lost their lives during the two world wars. The gathering brought together military and diplomatic representatives to honour those buried at the cemetery and to reflect on the commitment to peace.
US Army Pacific said the participants gathered “to honor those who lost their lives in war and reflect on our commitment to peace and our shared responsibility to preserve it”.
Vowell’s visit places the US Army Pacific leadership at the centre of a series of engagements with Sri Lankan defence officials. During his stay in Colombo, he met senior representatives of Sri Lanka’s defence establishment as part of discussions on military relations and areas of cooperation.
A US Army Pacific delegation led by Vowell also met Sri Lanka Army Commander Lieutenant General Nilantha Premaratne at Army Headquarters. The meeting provided an opportunity for discussions on matters of mutual interest and military relations between Sri Lanka and the United States.
The visit brought together representatives of countries whose diplomatic and defence missions in Sri Lanka participated in the remembrance ceremony. The presence of Australia, France, India, Japan and New Zealand alongside the United States and Sri Lanka reflected the international character of the commemoration at the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery.
Vowell is the Deputy Commanding General of US Army Pacific, the United States Army command responsible for army forces across the Indo-Pacific region. His participation in the ceremony was part of his official visit to Sri Lanka, during which he engaged with Sri Lankan defence and security representatives.
The wreath-laying ceremony focused on the service members who died in the two world wars and whose graves are maintained at Jawatta. Those attending paid tribute to the war dead and reaffirmed, in the words of US Army Pacific, their “shared responsibility to preserve” peace.
