Image: General Gunarathana presenting his book ‘Gotabaya Rajapaksa’ to Gotabaya Rajapaksa on 23 September 2019.
Asanga Abeygunasekara, the son of Ossie Abeygunasekara, made a series of statements during a recent discussion on a YouTube channel. Abeygunasekara contested the 2015 General Election from the Gampaha District under the United National Party (UNP) but was not elected. He later served as Director of the National Security Institute during the Good Governance Government. According to publicly available information, he currently serves as Executive Director of the South Asia Foresight Network in Washington and has been a Senior Fellow at the Millennium Project in Washington since 2021.
During the YouTube discussion, Asanga Abeygunasekara claimed that the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) had taken control of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s personal defence network. Abeygunasekara stated that this information was allegedly conveyed to him directly by Gotabaya Rajapaksa. At the time of writing, several days after the discussion became public, Gotabaya Rajapaksa has not issued a public response or denial regarding these claims.
According to Abeygunasekara’s account, Gotabaya Rajapaksa allegedly stated that his entire defence network had been taken over by the American Central Intelligence Agency and that CIA personnel had followed him during his visit to Singapore. Abeygunasekara further stated that, according to Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the former President believed he lost the presidency because individuals within his security structure acted in accordance with what he described as CIA interests.
In this context, Abeygunasekara named General Kamal Gunaratne, who served as Secretary of Defence during both Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s presidency and Ranil Rajapaksa’s presidency, as an individual who was allegedly involved in assisting the CIA. Abeygunasekara further stated that it was publicly known at the time that one of the conditions associated with Ranil Rajapaksa’s assumption of the presidency was the retention of Kamal Gunaratne as Defence Secretary. He suggested that this would indicate that Gotabaya Rajapaksa knowingly retained an individual whom he now allegedly regards as a CIA informant. These assertions were made by Abeygunasekara and were not supported by documentary evidence during the discussion.
Abeygunasekara also stated that Gotabaya Rajapaksa allegedly claimed that Admiral Jayantha Colombage, who served as his Foreign Affairs Advisor, had been an associate of the CIA. According to Abeygunasekara, Gotabaya Rajapaksa described Admiral Colombage as someone who attempted to cause him difficulties. Admiral Jayantha Colombage previously served as the 18th Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy and later held the positions of Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Affairs Advisor to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
During the discussion, Abeygunasekara further claimed that individuals close to Gotabaya Rajapaksa were associated with the non-governmental organization known as the Pathfinder Foundation, which was established by Milinda Moragoda. Abeygunasekara stated that Admiral Jayantha Colombage currently serves in this organization.
Abeygunasekara also referred to Major General Suresh Sally, who was arrested on 25 February 2026 in relation to Easter Sunday attacks (2019) in Sri Lanka, stating that Sally has been working at the Pathfinder Institute before his arrest. Abeygunasekara suggested, without providing evidence, that Suresh Sally may have been aware of what he described as the alleged CIA-related activities.
Another claim made by Abeygunasekara during the discussion was that opposition political groups are allegedly discussing the possibility of nominating Milinda Moragoda as a common candidate for the 2029 presidential election. Moragoda is well known political sympathiser of the United States.
Abeygunasekara further claimed that several individuals affiliated with the Pathfinder Institute were involved in what he described as Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s security network.
If the alleged CIA involvement described by Abeygunasekara were accurate, it would suggest a significant level of foreign intelligence influence within Sri Lanka’s security establishment. If proven this infiltration could pose a serious risk to the c current National People’s Power government.
Abeygunasekara also speculated that Ranil Rajapaksa’s rise to power may have been an indirect outcome of a CIA strategy. During the discussion, the YouTube channel host, Chamuditha Samarawickrama, questioned Abeygunasekara on whether he himself had obtained employment linked to the CIA after leaving government service. In response, Abeygunasekara stated that this, too, could have been part of what he described as a broader CIA plan. He claimed that he was recruited by USAID—an organization he characterized as being linked to the CIA—to prepare a report on Sri Lanka’s popular struggle of 2022, for which he stated he was paid more than one hundred thousand rupees per hour.
At present, the statements made by Asanga Abeygunasekara have they been formally addressed or examined in detail by Sri Lanka’s mainstream media.
Observers note that an allegation attributed to a former President—that his defence network was overtaken by a foreign intelligence agency—raises serious questions of national significance.