Sri Lanka will continue to depend on India for as long as the Sri Lankan government's war with Tamil separatists continues.

Sri Lanka, situated just offshore of southeastern India's Tamil Nadu state near the confluence of the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean, has been wracked by ethnic violence for more than 20 years. The civil war between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the Sri Lankan government, which continues unabated, has had a paralyzing effect on the island nation. The minority Tamils seek to secede from the majority-Sinhalese nation.

Just south of Sri Lanka's territorial waters are major international shipping routes connecting Southeast Asia with the Middle East. Among other shipping, oil tankers run from Persian Gulf terminals to buyers in Asia via the Indian Ocean. Peace in Sri Lanka would create many investment opportunities taking advantage of Sri Lanka's valuable location. Disturbingly for Sri Lanka, the Tigers' naval capability has expanded to the extent that the group now demands international recognition for the "Sea Tigers" on par with that of the Sri Lankan Navy. The Sea Tigers claim to have sunk more than 30 Sri Lankan naval vessels.

Sri Lanka's location places it close to numerous geopolitical hot spots. India's stature and influence in the international system continues to grow, while nearby Pakistan and Bangladesh battle Islamist militancy. The United States military understands the utility of Sri Lanka's proximity to these countries. In 2002, Washington and Colombo signed a broad defense agreement under which Sri Lanka allowed U.S. ships to dock and refuel in domestic ports in exchange for U.S. military training and equipment. U.S. warships involved in Afghan operations, such as the USS Sides, used the port of Colombo under the deal.

The port of Trincomalee, on the northeastern coast of Sri Lanka, also stands out as strategically significant. In recent weeks, the port town saw widespread attacks and retaliation between the Tigers and Sri Lankan forces. If peace were somehow established, Trincomalee would certainly rank on the U.S. military's wish list, being one of the deepest natural ports in the world. While Sri Lanka extracts some geopolitical utility from its location, much more could be achieved if a political resolution between the Tamils and the Sri Lankan government were not so inconceivable.

Sri Lanka's vast neighbor, India, has a vocal and electorally important ethnic Tamil constituency that sympathizes with the Tigers' cause. While India can never be seen as publicly sympathetic to militant group responsible for the assassination of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, domestic politics force New Delhi to avoid being seen as pro-Sinhalese (and thus anti-Tamil). The Indians also have an interest in keeping Sri Lanka in a state of contained chaos so long as an untenable refugee crisis does not overwhelm India.

China and Pakistan, meanwhile, have recognized the utility of assisting the Sri Lankan government in its fight with the Tigers as a tool to edge their way into India's backyard. The Tigers have not been shy against retaliating against outside interference, as the recent attack against the Pakistani ambassador to Sri Lanka showed.

Ultimately, Sri Lanka can extract little geopolitical or commercial advantage from its strategic location unless it strikes a definitive deal with its Tamil minority. As the violence of recent weeks demonstrates, however, the world will have to wait for such an outcome.