Full Text of President's Speech to Parliament

Sri Lanka’s Neutrality and Facing the International Crisis
We can only achieve victories by protecting our neutrality. Therefore, regardless of the pressure we face, we will absolutely not allow our neutrality to slip away. I know that some Members of Parliament and various parties have suggested that we are biased toward a certain group, or that we failed to make the right decisions at the right time. First and foremost, I tell you that these are completely false claims.

The Issue of Iranian Vessels and US Aircraft
Take the issue of the Iranian ships. On February 26, 2026, they made a request. They asked for permission for three of their naval vessels to make a goodwill visit to Sri Lanka on March 9 and 13 to foster cooperation. We were actively studying the possibility of granting permission for those specific dates.

Similarly, on the evening of that exact same day, the United States asked us to allow two of their military fighter jets, currently near Djibouti, to land at the Mattala Airport. So, we had two requests in front of us: Iran asking for their naval vessels to enter Sri Lanka on March 9 and 13, and the US asking for their military aircraft to land at Mattala.

What did we do? We made a very clear decision. We must protect our country's neutrality. By then, signals of armed conflict had already emerged. Therefore, we denied permission to both parties. That is what neutrality means. I remember some people asking why we didn't allow the Iranian ship. If we had, what would have happened? Our entire neutrality would have been lost. We would have had to act partially toward one side, or allow the other side to enter as well. If that happened, a war from a distant region would have reached Mattala and the Colombo Port. We operate by protecting our neutrality, no matter the pressure.

Naval Rescue Operations and Humanitarian Aid
Then, on February 27, we received a request regarding a vessel named 'Irish Icebound'. It was reported that a sailor had been injured in an accident, and they requested to bring him and an accompanying officer to Sri Lanka. Based on our neutrality and international obligations, we must provide assistance in such situations. Accordingly, on February 27, we allowed the sailor and officer to be brought to Sri Lanka and admitted to Durdans Hospital. We did not bring them in; the logistics company supplying that shipping line did. We fulfilled our duty according to international conventions.

Later, on March 4, it was reported that an Iranian vessel had been attacked near the boundary of our economic zone. Although it was not our territorial waters, we have international obligations within our economic zone. Based on international commitments and humanity, our Navy and Air Force launched a massive operation. There are international standards dictating how many days of surveillance must be conducted after such an explosion, and how far we must search based on ocean currents. We followed all these standards. We covered the maximum distance and time required to rescue survivors and recover bodies. We brought 32 injured individuals and 84 bodies ashore. That is our humanity and our neutrality.

Following the attack on the morning of March 4, they requested permission for their second vessel to reach the Colombo Port due to engine failure. Many claimed, "If they had gone 11 hours earlier, they could have been saved." The first request came on Feb 26 to arrive on March 9; I think people are confusing the dates and hours. The request for the second vessel was made after the first one was attacked. Because of engine failure, they couldn't move and asked to approach Colombo.

Under international law, if a warring party enters our waters, the maximum time they can stay is 24 hours. After that, they must leave; we cannot harbor them indefinitely. If we rescue an endangered group in a war and send them back to fight, we are representing one side. Therefore, we informed them that if they could not leave within 24 hours, they had to surrender to our custody. That is where our neutrality is preserved. Once in our custody, we required them to completely disembark. We took 26 sailors into our naval base. Knowing they were soldiers facing severe trauma, we carefully provided them with food and water. Two who fell ill were sent to the Welisara Naval Hospital. We cared for them with utmost humanity, and this process earned Sri Lanka international recognition and respect.

Subsequently, they requested to take the bodies back to their country. We granted permission, and an aircraft recently arrived to repatriate them. The 32 individuals from the attacked vessel treated at Karapitiya Hospital have recovered and are currently staying at the nearby Koggala Air Force base. Throughout this international conflict, our policy remains to protect our neutrality.

The UN Resolution and US Agreements
Recently, a resolution regarding these attacks was brought to the UN Security Council. While many nations supported it, we did not. Why? Because the resolution was half-baked and incomplete. We always champion justice and fairness on the international stage, and we acted accordingly.

Some people make false claims in Parliament, saying "if we brought them in 12 hours earlier, they could have been saved." They are trying to create a narrative that "the Sri Lankan government's negligence caused the first ship to be destroyed." This is an inhumane and highly reactionary accusation internationally. I urge that while you can question diesel or food issues locally, please speak the truth during such a critical global juncture.

Furthermore, the US requested us to close the Mattala Airport for their two aircraft on April 4 and 8, noting that anti-ship missiles were mounted on their wings. Some argue that because we have a defense agreement with the US, we cannot avoid being a party to this war. This is completely false. Our agreements with the US contain no mention of military partnerships in such wars. Our Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) cover:

    Aviation-related activities

    Maintenance training programs

    Maritime domain awareness

    Cybersecurity and secure communications

    Humanitarian aid and disaster response

Sri Lanka’s Neutrality and Facing the International Crisis
We can only achieve victories by protecting our neutrality. Therefore, regardless of the pressure we face, we will absolutely not allow our neutrality to slip away. I know that some Members of Parliament and various parties have suggested that we are biased toward a certain group, or that we failed to make the right decisions at the right time. First and foremost, I tell you that these are completely false claims.

The Issue of Iranian Vessels and US Aircraft
Take the issue of the Iranian ships. On February 26, 2026, they made a request. They asked for permission for three of their naval vessels to make a goodwill visit to Sri Lanka on March 9 and 13 to foster cooperation. We were actively studying the possibility of granting permission for those specific dates.

Similarly, on the evening of that exact same day, the United States asked us to allow two of their military fighter jets, currently near Djibouti, to land at the Mattala Airport. So, we had two requests in front of us: Iran asking for their naval vessels to enter Sri Lanka on March 9 and 13, and the US asking for their military aircraft to land at Mattala.

What did we do? We made a very clear decision. We must protect our country's neutrality. By then, signals of armed conflict had already emerged. Therefore, we denied permission to both parties. That is what neutrality means. I remember some people asking why we didn't allow the Iranian ship. If we had, what would have happened? Our entire neutrality would have been lost. We would have had to act partially toward one side, or allow the other side to enter as well. If that happened, a war from a distant region would have reached Mattala and the Colombo Port. We operate by protecting our neutrality, no matter the pressure.

Naval Rescue Operations and Humanitarian Aid
Then, on February 27, we received a request regarding a vessel named 'Irish Icebound'. It was reported that a sailor had been injured in an accident, and they requested to bring him and an accompanying officer to Sri Lanka. Based on our neutrality and international obligations, we must provide assistance in such situations. Accordingly, on February 27, we allowed the sailor and officer to be brought to Sri Lanka and admitted to Durdans Hospital. We did not bring them in; the logistics company supplying that shipping line did. We fulfilled our duty according to international conventions.

Later, on March 4, it was reported that an Iranian vessel had been attacked near the boundary of our economic zone. Although it was not our territorial waters, we have international obligations within our economic zone. Based on international commitments and humanity, our Navy and Air Force launched a massive operation. There are international standards dictating how many days of surveillance must be conducted after such an explosion, and how far we must search based on ocean currents. We followed all these standards. We covered the maximum distance and time required to rescue survivors and recover bodies. We brought 32 injured individuals and 84 bodies ashore. That is our humanity and our neutrality.

Following the attack on the morning of March 4, they requested permission for their second vessel to reach the Colombo Port due to engine failure. Many claimed, "If they had gone 11 hours earlier, they could have been saved." The first request came on Feb 26 to arrive on March 9; I think people are confusing the dates and hours. The request for the second vessel was made after the first one was attacked. Because of engine failure, they couldn't move and asked to approach Colombo.

Under international law, if a warring party enters our waters, the maximum time they can stay is 24 hours. After that, they must leave; we cannot harbor them indefinitely. If we rescue an endangered group in a war and send them back to fight, we are representing one side. Therefore, we informed them that if they could not leave within 24 hours, they had to surrender to our custody. That is where our neutrality is preserved. Once in our custody, we required them to completely disembark. We took 26 sailors into our naval base. Knowing they were soldiers facing severe trauma, we carefully provided them with food and water. Two who fell ill were sent to the Welisara Naval Hospital. We cared for them with utmost humanity, and this process earned Sri Lanka international recognition and respect.

Subsequently, they requested to take the bodies back to their country. We granted permission, and an aircraft recently arrived to repatriate them. The 32 individuals from the attacked vessel treated at Karapitiya Hospital have recovered and are currently staying at the nearby Koggala Air Force base. Throughout this international conflict, our policy remains to protect our neutrality.

The UN Resolution and US Agreements
Recently, a resolution regarding these attacks was brought to the UN Security Council. While many nations supported it, we did not. Why? Because the resolution was half-baked and incomplete. We always champion justice and fairness on the international stage, and we acted accordingly.

Some people make false claims in Parliament, saying "if we brought them in 12 hours earlier, they could have been saved." They are trying to create a narrative that "the Sri Lankan government's negligence caused the first ship to be destroyed." This is an inhumane and highly reactionary accusation internationally. I urge that while you can question diesel or food issues locally, please speak the truth during such a critical global juncture.

Furthermore, the US requested us to close the Mattala Airport for their two aircraft on April 4 and 8, noting that anti-ship missiles were mounted on their wings. Some argue that because we have a defense agreement with the US, we cannot avoid being a party to this war. This is completely false. Our agreements with the US contain no mention of military partnerships in such wars. Our Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) cover:

    Aviation-related activities

    Maintenance training programs

    Maritime domain awareness

    Cybersecurity and secure communications

    Humanitarian aid and disaster response


Global Economic Impact and the Fuel Tender Process
As I explained before, one party in this war is aiming for complete regime change in another state. Since the defending party lacks strong military power, their strategy is to apply pressure on the global economy. That is why they started attacking airports, ports, oil refineries, and oil tankers. Their survival strategy is to cause global economic distress.

For Sri Lanka, this impacts us in two main ways:

    Supply Chains: Disruption to the gas and fuel supply routes centered in the Middle East.

    Remittances: The safety and income of nearly one million Sri Lankan expatriate workers in that region.

We have been working very systematically through the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC). We stopped corrupt "spot purchases" and focused entirely on securing energy through long-term tenders and Government-to-Government (G2G) agreements.

The main issue currently is crude oil. We were expecting a 90,000 MT crude oil ship from the Fujairah port around March 24-25. However, due to the disaster at the Fujairah port, this long-term tender has been delayed. A second 90,000 MT tender from Fujairah is also unavailable.

Anticipating this on March 5 (just days into the conflict), we proactively called for new tenders for diesel, petrol, furnace oil, Jet A-1, and crude oil. We opened these on March 13.

    Diesel: Awarded, arriving April 6-7.

    Petrol: Awarded, arriving April 16-17.

    Furnace Oil: Awarded, arriving April 12-13.

    Jet A-1: Awarded, arriving April 10-11.

    Crude Oil: No company bid to supply in April, but we awarded a tender for a June arrival.

Since our local refinery only covers 35% of our needs, our priority right now is importing refined oil to make up for the crude oil shortage.

Preventing the Black Market and Ensuring Supply
During such times, a black market emerges. Our primary goal is an uninterrupted energy supply. Last week, the Cabinet appointed a special apolitical committee of state officials to review proposals from various companies to bring in fuel. Based on port availability, we might secure a crude oil ship before the 12th.

We are pursuing every alternative. If all our plans succeed simultaneously, we might temporarily have a fuel surplus and ships waiting at the port. I am willing to take that risk because a surplus is far better than a shortage, especially given the unpredictable nature of this war. Furthermore, we issued instant licenses to five private bunkering companies to supply fuel directly to export industries, easing the burden on the state.

Dealings with Russia and Fuel Price Fluctuations
Trade sanctions on Russia were lifted on the 11th. We immediately began discussions with them, and we are making progress. It is hypocritical that the opposition, who previously criticized us for not leaning on the US to solve this, is now asking why we didn't go to Russia sooner.

Regarding fuel prices, fluctuations are driven by:

    The appreciation of the Dollar.

    The rise in global oil prices.

    Taxes and the impact of corruption.

In the 2022-2023 crisis, fuel prices skyrocketed (from Rs. 137 to Rs. 420 for petrol) not because of global oil prices, but because the dollar crashed from Rs. 185 to nearly Rs. 400. Today's crisis is different: it is strictly due to global oil prices rising. A simple formula is that a $1 increase in global oil prices translates to a Rs. 2 increase in our local market.

Furthermore, risk premiums have skyrocketed. Our long-term tenders usually have a premium of under $3. Today, suppliers are demanding premiums up to $40 due to security risks. As a result, countries worldwide have increased fuel prices by 50% to 150%.

Private Sector Contribution and Price Adjustments
The CPC supplies 57% of our fuel, while the private sector supplies 43%. If it were just the CPC, we could absorb losses temporarily. However, private companies will not import fuel if they are forced to sell at a loss (currently estimated at $55 million per ship).

There is a legal friction: while our agreements with private companies allow them to set prices, the Petroleum Act dictates that the CPC sets the maximum retail price. We are looking into this. If a price gap of Rs. 100 - Rs. 150 opens up between the CPC and private stations, citizens will endure 7-hour queues at CPC stations rather than buy private fuel. We must minimize this gap.

Regarding taxes, we collect about Rs. 20 billion a month. This is necessary because the Treasury absorbed Rs. 884 billion in CPC debt in 2003, and just paying the interest requires Rs. 100 billion a year. We want to provide targeted subsidies (to fishermen, farmers, and small businesses like 'Choon Paan' bakers), but identifying the informal economy is complex.

To prevent hoarding and black-market activities before price adjustments, we have reactivated the QR code system. We will revoke the licenses of any station owners violating the rules, and the police are actively raiding illegal fuel stockpiles (seizing 19,000 liters yesterday alone).

Gas Supply and Breaking the Cartels
Currently, we have one main gas supplier, Litro, and another private company. For decades, massive cartels have controlled our supply chains—whether it's vehicle number plates, passports, coal, or gas. We are breaking these cartels!

When we try to change a tender process that has been held by the same corrupt politicians, officials, and businessmen for 15 to 28 years, they create artificial crises. They bribe officials and pump money into the media to spread false rumors about "upcoming gas shortages" in March. Because we broke the gas cartel and diversified our tenders to include suppliers from the Middle East and Europe, we actually have a stable gas supply today.

We have 38,000 MT of gas for March (with 30,000 MT currently being unloaded from a floating storage) and another 30,000 MT scheduled for April. There is no long-term gas crisis. The localized shortages happened because private companies failed to supply hotels, forcing Litro to step in. We have also allowed BOI export companies to release 20% of their gas to the local market temporarily to ensure domestic stability.

2025/2026: A Golden Milestone for the Economy
As we make these decisions, we are highly focused on the economic milestones of 2025 and this current year.

    Budget Deficit: We have brought it down to a historic 2.4%.

    Current Account: We are reporting a positive surplus of $1.8 billion.

    State Revenue: After the disastrous tax cuts of 2022 that dropped revenue to below 7.5% of GDP, we have now increased tax revenue to exceed 15.8%, bringing total revenue to approximately 14.2% of GDP—the highest in decades.

    Inflation & Interest: Inflation remains very low, and bank interest rates have been kept at single digits (around 8%) for 17 consecutive months.

Debt Restructuring and National Security
Today, the Cabinet approved the signing of an agreement to transfer SriLankan Airlines' debt to the Treasury. This restructuring clears a major hurdle for our international credit ratings and places our economy in a highly optimal position.

We have established operational committees led by ministers meeting every two days to manage supply chains for the festival season, tea factories, apparel, and agriculture. We have instructed the state sector to cut energy expenses by 25%.

In terms of security, we have provided the Navy and defense forces with a two-month fuel reserve, which recently enabled them to seize a massive 270 kg cocaine shipment. We have also secured a six-week fuel reserve for the health sector, ports, and airports to ensure these vital systems do not collapse under any circumstances.

Conclusion
There may be some hurdles and friction in this smooth economic journey due to global crises and high energy costs. We are actively discussing how to mitigate these impacts and provide relief to the public.

I assure the people that despite the confusion caused by this global crisis, the Cabinet, Ministry Secretaries, and CPC officials are working sleepless nights, not just for their salaries, but out of responsibility for this country. We ask for the support and cooperation of all citizens as we work to stabilize our supply chains and adapt to these global challenges. Thank you, Honorable Speaker.