Indian Army Chief General Dalbir Singh is expected to arrive in Sri Lanka next year as a part of his first set of foreign tours after his appointment to the top post in the Indian Army on July 31, 2014.

Hindustan Times reported that his visit to Sri Lanka will be part of his set of official visits to neighboring countries. India will be focusing on strengthening military ties with countries in the immediate neighbourhood. Accordingly, General Dalbir Singh’s first set of foreign tours will be to Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar.

Although it was not clear as to when the visit to Sri Lanka will take place it is expected to be in the early part of the year.

The army chief is likely to travel to Bhutan and Nepal later this year, Hindustan Times further said. These will be followed by visits to the other neighbouring countries next year.

Narendra Modi gave an indication of giving priority to the neighborhood when he invited all leaders of SAARC for his ceremony of taking oaths in May. General Singh’s visits will also be in line of this new policy of the Modi government.

Indian media states that these visits to these countries are significant in view of growing Chinese presence in them.