COLOMBO, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's Minister of Public Security Ananda Wijepala announced in parliament on Tuesday that tri-forces personnel assigned to provide security for former presidents will be withdrawn starting next week, with only police protection to be made available.
The minister emphasized that police security for each former president will be determined based on the results of security assessments conducted every six months.
The decision is part of the government's efforts to reassess and reduce public spending amid ongoing economic challenges, Wijepala said.
He added that approximately 1.5 billion rupees (about 5 million U.S. dollars) have been spent on the security of former presidents over the past 11 and a half months. ■
