Equipment
A
T-55AM2 Main battle tank of the
SLAC
A
BMP-2 Infantry fighting vehicle ] of the
SLAC
provide close contact protection to their
Alvis Saladin and
Ferret Scout Cars which were vulnerable to
anti-tank weapons. The capability of the
Sri Lanka Artillery was enhanced with the introduction of
Ordnance QF 25 pounders.
[25][53] Chinese-made 122 mm, 130 mm and 152 mm howitzers were introduced to the Sri Lankan Army in 1995 and 1998 whilst 122 mm Multi Barrel Rocket Launchers (MBRL), were first used in 2000 by the Sri Lanka Army.
[54]
Though the weapons were obsolete at the time of purchase, the Government security forces found them to be successful in combat. Land mines proved to be the most lethal threat to the security forces, as many mines have been deployed against government forces by the LTTE in the Northern and Eastern Provinces. These mines are deployed with normalcy against government trucks and buses, with a high rate of casualty. These land mines weighed approximately 50 - 100kgs, against which no armoured vehicle that the SLA possessed was able to withstand the blast effect. Therefore the
South African made
Buffel was introduced to service in 1985 to reduce damage due to land mines. By 1987 the Army's own
Unicorn was also developed to a level so that they too matched the capabilities of the Buffels from South Africa, this was followed up by the newer
Unibuffel class
[55]. Both the Unicorn and the Unibuffel are assembled by the
Sri Lanka Electrical & Mechanical Engineers.
[25][53]
In recent years, Sri Lanka has become increasingly reliant on China for weapons.
[56] This is due to most
European nations and the
United States Governments passing regulations about the selling of weaponry to nations which are suffering from internal conflict.
[57] However in light of recent attacks by the LTTE, the
United States has expressed its intent to maintain military training assistance and possibly increase it should the violence continue.
China has no such regulations upon their arms producers, and some see the sales as an attempt to gain political influence with strategically-important Sri Lanka.
[58] Sri Lanka also continues to receive a variety of weapons from
Britain,
Pakistan,
Israel and other former suppliers.
[59][56]
Infantry weapons
HandgunsAssault RiflesSub-Machine gunsSniper RiflesMachine gunsGrenade launchersRocket launchersAnti-tank missilesArmoured vehicles
Main battle tanks
Infantry fighting vehicles
Armoured personnel carriers
Reconnaissance vehicles
Engineering Support Vehicles
Multiple rocket launchersArtilleryLight and Towed mortars
- Type 86 (W86) 120 mm mortars
- Type 84 (W84) 82 mm mortars
- Type 89 60 mm mortars