Foreign Minister Tilak Marapana paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi last afternoon. Prime Minister Modi congratulated him on assuming his new responsibility as Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka. Prime Minister referred to his fruitful visit to Sri Lanka in May this year for the International Vesak Day.
Prime Minister also reaffirmed the high importance India attaches to its relations with Sri Lanka. Both countries enjoy deep and broad-based ties.
Prime Minister conveyed that he looked forward to continue to work closely with the President and the Prime of Sri Lanka to further strengthen and expand bilateral cooperation.
Meanwhile, the foreign minister and his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj held wide ranging discussions yesterday during his first overseas visit since assuming office recently. Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said during the meeting at ‘Hyderabad House’ the two counterparts touched on ‘bi-lateral issues as well as understandings reached during recent high level visits’.
The two Ministers met for the first time in Colombo when Minister Swaraj arrived in Colombo the previous week to attend second Indian Ocean Conference.
Minister Marapana was received in Delhi on Friday by High Commissioner for Sri Lanka in India Chitranganee Wagiswara and Joint Secretary of the IORA Division of the Ministry of External Affairs of India Sanjay Panda, at the Indira Gandhi International Airport.
Minister Marapana will return to Colombo this evening.