President Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday appointed Major General (Rtd.) Gunaratne as the new Defence Secretary.Kamal Gunaratne is the former Commander Security Forces Headquarters - Wanni, General Officer Commanding (GOC) 53 Division, Colonel of the Regiment, Mechanized Infantry Regiment (MIR) and Master General Ordnance (MGO) of the Army Headquarters.

He had also served as a Deputy Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Brazil.Following his retirement from the army in September 2016, Gunaratne authored a book ‘Road to Nandikadal’ on the war against the LTTE.-