The founding leader of the National People’s Power (NPP) and Hon’ble President of Sri Lanka, Anura Kumar Dissanayake, is visiting India for 3 days. His visit has been scheduled after the sweeping victory of the left-wing National People’s Power (NPP) coalition in the snap parliamentary elections of Sri Lanka. This is the first foreign trip made by President Dissanayake since his winning of the popular vote in the Sri Lanka’s Presidential Elections.
President Dissanayake meets with Indian political administration officials
Diplomatic officials, including Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Dr. S. Murugan, warmly welcomed Dissanayake upon his arrival in India. The Sri Lankan President also held ‘fruitful’ discussions with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. He was also scheduled to have an elaborate dialogue with Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi and also met with the Hon’ble President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu. The dialogue between Sri Lanka and India will be centered around the fortification of economic ties and greater cooperation on matters related to regional security and stability between the two nations.
President Dissanayake seeks to hit the right chord in order to create balanced and healthy ties of partnership with India, China, the US, and Russia. The much awaited visit has taken place amidst the growing tensions in the Indo-China relationship, after China attempted to increase its military presence in the Indian Ocean. India also witnessed a conflict of interest with Sri Lanka’s government after the docking of a Chinese missile and satellite tracking ship, ‘Yuan Wang,’ at Hambantota port in Sri Lanka.
The visit is significant for building mutual trust between India and Sri Lanka.
During his meeting with the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, at the official meeting venue, the Hyderabad House, President Dissanayake told the media that he has given assurance to PM Modi that Sri Lanka will never allow its territory to be used inimically towards the interests of the security of India and its regional stability. Sri Lanka will be completing a one-year moratorium on all foreign research vessels docking at its ports.
With this strategic visit of the President of Sri Lanka to India towards friendship and mutual cooperation, the two world leaders held an important talk on various integral issues relating to the security of India and Sri Lanka, digital infrastructure and innovation, connectivity, and energy projects while they also considered that their interests are intertwined.
The Indian officials and President Dissanayake held discussions towards the conclusion of a defense cooperation agreement and ramping up of bilateral ties by establishing electricity grid connectivity and multi-product petroleum pipelines. The Indian Prime Minister took this opportunity to convey India’s incessant support towards economic stability and recovery of Sri Lanka from the economic crisis of 2022.
