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Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa arrives in India, to meet PM today
MEA spokesperson says the visit demonstrates strength of bilateral ties.
In his first overseas tour after taking over the reins of Sri Lanka over a week ago, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa arrived in New Delhi on a three-day visit, signalling his intent to deepen bilateral ties with India.
The three-day official visit, on the invite of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will see the two leaders discuss regional security, peace and economic development. On Friday, Rajapaksa and Modi are scheduled to hold extensive talks to explore ways to further expand the already close ties between the two neighbouring countries.
President Rajapaksa was welcomed by minister of state, Gen (retd) VK Singh as he touched down in New Delhi.
“A civilisational relationship nurtured through millennia. President @GotabayaR Aon his first overseas visit since assuming office arrives in India on a State visit at PM @narendramodi’s invitation, demonstrating the strength & dynamism of India-SriLanka relations.#NeighbourhoodFirst”, tweeted MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar.
A plethora of issues, including fulfilling aspirations of Tamil community in Sri Lanka, situation in the Indian Ocean region and steps to boost trade and investment ties, are likely to figure in the talks. Last week, India said it was looking forward to working closely with the new Sri Lankan government and hoped that it would be able to fulfil the aspirations of the Tamil community in that country.
In a tweet, before leaving for New Delhi, Rajapaksa said he was looking forward to strengthening bilateral relations with India. “Leaving for my first state visit to India and looking forward to strengthening bilateral relations with Shri @narendramodi and Govt of India,” he said.
The team accompanying him includes secretary to the Sri Lankan President PB Jayasundara, foreign secretary Ravinatha Aryasinha, treasury Secretary SR Attygalle, President’s advisor Lalith Weerathunge and President’s private secretary Sugeeshwara Bandara.
Union external affairs minister S Jaishankar visited Colombo last week as a special envoy of Prime Minister Modi to convey his greetings to Rajapaksa.
According to the itinerary, Jaishankar will call on the Sri Lankan leader on Friday morning at the ITC Maurya.
After a ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Modi will hold talks at noon. In the evening he will call on President Ram Nath Kovind. On Saturday the Sri Lankan President will attend events in Delhi and leave in the evening. Rajapaksa, a former defence secretary who is credited with ending the country’s long civil war, was sworn in as the island nation’s new president on November 18, a day after he won the closely fought presidential election in island nation. Three days later, he appointed his elder brother Mahinda Rajapaksa as the prime minister.
Meanwhile, MDMK leader Vaiko and his party workers staged a protest against newly elected Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at Jantar Mantar here on Thursday, ahead of the foreign leader’s arrival in India.
Vaiko accused the central government of “hobnobbing” with Rajapaksa, who was the country’s defence minister during the 2009 Sri Lankan civil war.
“The government of Narendra Modi is hobnobbing with the Sri Lankan government. This is nothing but terrible betrayal of Tamils. Tamils in Sri Lanka are afraid and are in serious panic,” party statement released in Chennai quoted him as saying.
Fishermen of Tamil Nadu are repeatedly attacked by the Sri Lankan Navy, he alleged. “More than 580 Tamil fishermen have been killed in the past 30 years and their boats seized. Many more were put behind bars in Sri Lanka,” he alleged.
