Lagatar24 Desk
Colombo, Oct. 2: Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla arrived in Sri Lanka on Saturday for a four-day visit, during which he will meet with the top officials of the island nation, including President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, and assess bilateral ties.
According to the foreign ministry, Shringla arrived in Colombo at the request of his Lankan counterpart Jayanath Colombage. “The visit will contribute to the two nations’ long-standing multi-faceted relations and strengthen bilateral collaboration,” the ministry said in a statement.
Shringla will also travel to the central district of Kandy, eastern port district of Trincomalee and the northern city of Jaffna. After taking over as Foreign Secretary in January of last year, this is his first trip to Sri Lanka. The Indian High Commission said on Friday that Shringla’s visit will provide an opportunity to assess bilateral connections, progress on ongoing bilateral initiatives, and continued cooperation to address Covid-related problems.
His visit occurred just days after Adani Group, an Indian multinational conglomerate based in Ahmedabad, signed an agreement with the Port Authority of Sri Lanka to build the Colombo Port’s West International Container Terminal.
His visit comes at a time when Sri Lanka is experiencing economic difficulties, and he is expected to assess if India could help the island nation get through the crisis.
The foreign secretary’s travel to the neighbouring country is expected to include discussions about the construction of the western cargo terminal at the Colombo port. Shringla is also expected to repeat India’s position on the long-pending Tamil problem during his talks in Colombo.
India has repeatedly urged Sri Lanka to honour its obligations to safeguard the Tamil community’s interests and maintain the island nation’s multi-ethnic and multi-religious character.
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