Visiting External Affairs Minister of India Dr. S. Jaishankar holds talks with Foreign Minister Ali Sabry

External Affairs Minister of India Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Foreign Minister M.U.M. Ali Sabry 

External Affairs Minister of India Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar who was on a one-day official visit to Sri Lanka met with his Sri Lankan counterpart, Foreign Minister M.U.M. Ali Sabry for bilateral talks at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday afternoon. 

This was Dr. Jaishankar’s first bilateral visit after being reappointed to the high office following the recent general elections in India. 

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. 

Foreign Secretary Aruni Wijewardane and senior officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were associated with the Foreign Minister for the bilateral talks. Following bilateral talks, the visiting Indian External Affairs Minister signed the Guest Book at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

Yesterday morning, the visiting External Affairs Minister of India was received on arrival at the Bandaranaike International Airport by the State Minister of Foreign Affairs Tharaka Balasuriya. 

Prior to the bilateral discussions at the Foreign Ministry, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar paid courtesy calls on President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena.  Following the call on the President at the President’s House, Dr. Jaishankar joined President Ranil Wickremesinghe in virtually handing over 48 houses, 24 each in Colombo and Trincomalee, built under the Model Village Housing Project and 106 houses in three up-country estates, built under Phase III of the Indian Housing Project, with funding from India. 

On this occasion, the Indian External Affairs Minister also virtually commissioned the Sri Lanka Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), which was established under a grant from India. 

Dr. Jaishankar was accompanied by a delegation of senior officials from the Ministry of External Affairs of India and the High Commissioner of India in Colombo.