Sri Lanka has declined a United States request to station warplanes at one of its airports.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake told parliament that the United States sought, at the beginning of March, to deploy two warplanes at Mattala International Airport.
He said the aircraft were fitted with anti-ship missiles and were to be brought to Sri Lanka from a base in Djibouti.
The president informed the house that the request was refused in clear terms.
Earlier, several US allies had also declined to take part in a war against Iran.
US President Donald Trump had expressed displeasure, saying the United States did not require assistance from others.
