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High-powered Chinese delegation whisked away on arrival at BIA
The 26-member higher-powered Chinese delegation, which arrived in Colombo on Thursday night, was whisked away under a tight security escort.
Our Airport Correspondent says the VVIP Lounge was declared out of bounds to journalists and no photographs of the visiting delegation were allowed.
The delegation, which arrived aboard a special flight BJN099 from Beijing at 7.40 pm, was welcomed by State Minister Tharaka Balasuriya, Foreign Secretary Jayanath Colombage and senior Chinese Embassy officials in Colombo.
However, as soon as the members of the delegation emerged from the VVIP Lounge, they were ushered into a convoy of waiting vehicles and driven away under security escort, our BIA correspondent said.
Under normal circumstances all visitors to Sri Lanka must quarantine for 14 days. However, members of the visiting Chinese delegation were not placed under quarantine as they had undergone a PCR test prior to arriving in Sri Lanka, Health Minister, Pavithra Wanniarachchi said.
The delegation, led by former Chinese Foreign Minister and incumbent Communist Party Political Bureau Member, Yang Jiechi, met with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Friday before leaving for Beijing later in the evening.
Being the first ever Chinese visit in the South Asian region, since the global Corona epidemic, the visit is expected to strengthen cooperation between Sri Lanka and China, in the areas of combating the global pandemic and revival of economic relations, the Foreign Relations Ministry said.
The travel bubble set up for the purpose of this important visit will confine the delegation to Colombo and restrict their engagements to just two meetings with the Head of State and the Prime Minister, under the strict health protocol prescribed by the Ministry of Health, it added.
Following the conclusion of bilateral discussions between President Anura Kumara Disanayake and Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, official-level talks between the delegations of Sri Lanka and India commenced this morning (05) at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo.
Representing the Government of Sri Lanka were Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath; Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Anil Jayantha; Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake; Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Dr. P. Nandalal Weerasinghe, along with other senior officials.
The Indian delegation included Minister of External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and His Excellency Santosh Jha, High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, along with several other senior officials of the Government of India.
Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, who arrived in Sri Lanka on the invitation of President Anura Kumara Disanayake on Friday [04] night, visited the Presidential Secretariat this morning (05).
The Indian Prime Minister was warmly welcomed by President Anura Kumara Disanayake upon his arrival at the Presidential Secretariat.
Prime Minister Modi is currently on a state visit to Sri Lanka, reaffirming the theme “Friendship of Centuries — Commitment to a Prosperous Future” which symbolises the longstanding ties between Sri Lanka and India. The Indian Premier is scheduled to remain in the country until tomorrow (06).
[PMD]
The official welcoming ceremony for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was held this morning (05) at the Independence Square in Colombo.
On arrival at the Independence Square the Indian Prime Minister was warmly welcomed by President Anura Kumara Disanayake.
Discussions between Sri Lankan and Indian delegations at the presidential secretariat
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Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi arrives at the presidential secretariat
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