Sri Lanka, March 6 -- In the backdrop of an Iranian warship sinking off in Sri Lanka's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) after a U.S. submarine attack, former Foreign Secretary Ravinatha Aryasinha said it was ' thankfully' that Sri Lanka had not signed the Status of Force Agreement with the U.S. despite many people advocating for it at that time.

A SOFA is an international treaty that defines the legal rights, privileges, and obligations of foreign military personnel operating in a host country. In Sri Lanka, discussions on a SOFA surfaced during the time of the Yahapalana government, particularly in the context of bilateral military cooperation with the United States, but the country never signed it.

Mr. Aryasinha who served as the Foreign...