Visiting Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar has engaged in discussions with high-level Sri Lankan Government officials, reviewing the progress of ongoing development projects between the two nations.
This visit marks the first diplomatic exchange between India and Sri Lanka following the inauguration of the new Indian government.
Soon after his arrival, Minister Jaishankar called on President Ranil Wickremesinghe at the President’s House in Colombo this morning.
During the meeting, the Indian Minister and Sri Lankan President jointly unveiled a digital plaque commemorating the inauguration of 106 houses constructed under the Indian Housing Project in Kandy, Nuwara Eliya, and Matale districts. Additionally, they handed over 24 houses from model villages in Colombo and Trincomalee to their respective beneficiaries.
The highlight of the event was the formal commissioning of the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), comprising a main centre at the Colombo Naval Headquarters, a sub-centre in Hambantota, and unmanned installations in strategic locations across Sri Lanka’s coastline. This initiative underscores the deepening maritime security cooperation between India and Sri Lanka.
Minister Jaishankar later called on his Sri Lankan counterpart, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry for bilateral talks at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The bilateral discussions at the Foreign Ministry centred on a range of issues of mutual interest including in the areas of economic and development cooperation, cooperation in regional and multilateral fora as well as cooperation between the Foreign Ministries of the two countries among others.
Following bilateral talks, the visiting Indian External Affairs Minister signed the Guest Book at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Indian Minister, who is on a one-day visit, also paid a courtesy call to Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena.
Commenting on the meeting, Minister Jaishankar said he reiterated India’s strong support through development and connectivity initiatives.
“Confident that our development assistance and capacity building programs will keep delivering for the aspirations of people of Sri Lanka,” he added in a post on ‘X’. (Newswire)