Reception on the occasion of “World Food 2009”
16th September, 2009
16th September 2009 at Ambassador’s residence. Foreign Ministry officials, Ambassadors from several countries and Sri Lankan participants for the “World Food 2009″ Trade Exhibition.
Also the Sri Lankan delegation led by Mr. Priyasath G Dep PC Solicitor General of Sri Lanka also participated this reception.
Sri Lanka successfully negotiates a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with the Russia
16th – 18th September, 2009
The second round of bilateral negotiations was held in Moscow from 16 – 18 September 2009 between the Delegations of Sri Lanka and the Russian Federation in order to conclude a bilateral treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters between the two countries. During negotiations, the two sides exchanged views on current developments relating to enhanced cooperation on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters and emphasized the need to cooperate at the international, regional and bilateral levels, in particular in the combating of international terrorism and organized crime.
At the end of the three day negotiations, the two sides initialed an Agreed text of a mutual legal assistance Treaty in criminal matters.
An eleven member Russian delegation was led by Mr. Kirichenko Yuri, Deputy Director of the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation and included representatives of the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Interior, the General Prosecutor’s Office and of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation.
The Sri Lankan delegation was led by Mr. Priyasath Dep, P.C. Solicitor General and consisted of HE Udayanga Weeratunga, Ambassador of Sri Lanka in Moscow, Mrs. Kamalini de Silva, Addl. Secretary of the Ministry of Justice & Law Reforms, Mrs. Nelum Mayadunne Bandara, Actg. Legal Advisor of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Mr. Parinda Ranasinghe, Senior State Counsel of the Attorney General’s Department.
Sri Lanka has recently concluded several bilateral mutual legal assistance treaties in the context of combating serious international crimes such as those relating to terrorism and narcotic trafficking. The current text which was successfully negotiated in Moscow, is due to be signed between Hon. Rohitha Bogollagama, Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Russian Foreign Minister during latter’s forthcoming visit to Sri Lanka in October 2009.
Food & Beverage Exhibition “World Food 2009″ in Expocenter
15 – 18 September, 2009
On Tuesday, 15 September, World Food Moscow 2009, the 18th International Exhibition and Conference for Food & Drink Products, took place in Expocentre. The Tea Promotion Unit (TPU) of the Embassy participated for the first time at Worldfood 2009 in Moscow, the largest international food & beverage exhibition in Russia and Eastern Europe, together with three leading tea exporters: Unitrades Ltd, Tea Com (Pvt) Ltd, and Ceylon Tea Land (Pvt) Ltd.
H.E. the Ambassador Mr. Udayanga Weeratunge graced the occasion at the opening ceremony and Sri Lankan exporters and their representatives in Moscow were also presented.
The exhibition began with sunny weather, a bravura march and new forecasts for the future. This annual event was organized by ITE Group Plc. United Kingdom, and ITE LLC. Moscow and assisted by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, State Duma of the Russian Federation and Government and Core Industrial Associations. All leading tea importers and distributors in Russia, regions of the Russian Federation, Azerbaijan, and Belarus were invited by TPU and wide publicity was given by the organizers to the fair. The participants displayed their range of products and had attractive stands.
Promotional brochures in Russian and in English and promotional tea sachets were distributed to the visitors during the fair. Each day of the fair, branded teas of the participating companies were utilized for the liquid tea service. An information desk providing information on product and other relevant information on the Sri Lankan tea industry was maintained at the stall. This desk was well made use of by interested visitors to the stall.
World Food Moscow is Russia’s premier international food and drink industry exhibition and conference. 2009 will be the 18th edition of the event. Russia is widely respected as one of the fastest growing retail food sales markets in the world and forecasts continue to predict substantial growth for branded and imported goods. World Food Moscow hosts a huge amount of international and domestic food and drink producers. They are all eager to promote their latest products and services to the food retail sector, caterers, chefs, wholesalers and distributors.
Many trade inquiries were made and a number of orders are presently under negotiation. The participation by the Sri Lanka Tea Board and the private sector companies was successful.
Asia Pasific Lady’s Club at the Embassy of Sri Lanka
10 September, 2009
Special Reception and lunch organized by the Mrs. Uma Weeratunga , spouse of H.E. the Ambassador Udayanga Weeratunga was held on 10th September 2010 at the Ambassador’s residence. More than 40 Ambassadors spouses participated this reception and they organized a special fashion show and working lecturer.
Sri Lanka Parliment Delegation Visit to Russia
07 September, 2009
Sri Lankan parliamentary delegation headed Minister of Mass Media Hon. Lakshman Yapa Abeywardene and Minister of Nation Building Hon. Jagath Pushpakumara visited Russian Federation on September 2009. They had discussions with Representative of the Russian Federation Duma and members of the United Russia Political Party in Russian Federation.
The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Russian Federation has produced an exclusive Audio guide CD in Russian Language with Sinhala/English short narrations about the selected popular tourist cities and places of Sri Lanka.
At a special ceremony at the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Russian Federation, to mark the launch of the Audio CD, the Ambassador to Russian Federation Mr. Udayanga Weeratunga said: We are proud to have undertaken this project. I would like to take this opportunity to commend the creative team that has developed and produced this outstanding piece of work, and also thanks for the embassy staff for their valuable contribution and cooperation.
This audio CD is a humble contribution towards to promote Sri Lanka among the Russians, particularly at a time when the nation needs tourists to travel to Sri Lanka. It consists of 2 Audio CDs and most necessary information’s and history about Colombo, Kandy, and Anuradhapura etc. Using this Audio CD Russian Travelers can visit to Sri Lanka on his own and also Travel Agencies and Tour Operators can use for their conveniences.
Ambassador Udayanga Weeratunga presented copies of this Audio Guide CDs to the Minister of Media in Sri Lanka Hon. Lakshman Yapa Abeywardene and Minister of Nation Building Hon. Jagath Pushpakumara and also presented one special copy to the President of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksa through Miss Daya Gallage , Coordinating Secretary to the President of Sri Lanka, who were participated this ceremony. Officials of the Foreign Ministry of Russian Federation, Ambassadors of the several countries and media personals also participated this reception.
Ambassador presents his credentials to the Foreign Minister of the Uzbekistan
31 August, 2009
The Sri Lankan Ambassador to Russian Federation accredited to the Republic of Uzbekistan, Udayanga Weeratunga presented his letter of credentials to Foreign Minister Norov Vladimir Imamovich of Uzbekistan on 30th August 2009 in Tashkent. After the ceremony, Minister Imamovich congratulated the Sri Lankan Government on the defeat of terrorism and the reunification of the motherland.
He further stated that the Republic of Uzbekistan will strengthen their relationship with Sri Lanka for the benefit of both countries in terms of stability, security and development.
Participation at the Aviation Salon MAKS 2009 in Zhukovsky
19 August, 2009
This was one of the leading Aviation Exhibition in the world aviation calendar MAKS. It had large fleet of aircraft, helicopters and UAV models for display including world leading cargo transporter AN 124 (RUSLAN). Sri Lanka Ambassador Udayanga Weeratunga and Defense Attaché Air Commodore Upali Chandratillake were among invitees as special guest at the exhibition and had opportunity to inspect the latest model of the ANTONOV regional Jetliner AN 148-100 series aircraft with its most experienced test pilots.
This is special occasion as this Aircraft meets most of the conditions applicable to Sri Lankan requirements. Picture shows the Ambassador in cockpit having conversation with its test pilot.AN 148-100 represents the new generation aircraft produced in 2007 by the world famous “ANTONOV” Aircraft Manufacturers in Ukraine & in Russia. Illyushin Finance Company has proudly introduced this latest model of regional jetliner to the Government of Sri Lanka for its consideration. Sri Lanka Air Force has been operating AN 32B aircraft fleet since 1996 with its optimum capability and this AN 148-100 model seems to be another suitable aircraft for the Sri Lankan purpose.
Sri Lanka Air Force student pilots & Engineering trainees attached to Russian Federation Academies had lifetime opportunity to witness sophisticated maneuvers of world leading fighter aircraft formation displays.
The Aviation Salon has by right earned a great reputation among both Russian and foreign specialists. It became top-ranked ground for business intercourse and for concluding mutually beneficial contracts. Each time thousands of people gather in Zhukovskiy to see unique aircrafts and rocketry, take a view of unequalled skill of aerobatic teams and feel the great atmosphere of the aviation festival. Each time MAKS becomes more and more prestigious among world experts and specialists and practically all world leaders in aerospace industry take part in the event.
Due to participation of leading international and Russian aviation manufacturers that present their recent developments and engineering achievements, the Aviation salon is ranked high by specialists and can by right be named among world’s most famous aviation. Business communication among scientists, engineers, technologists, managers and other specialists during MAKS 2009 will encourage a more efficient dialog between the government and business structures in the current economic climate. The organizers and sponsors of the event take great efforts to make exhibition conditions for participants more comfortable and also to provide best service for common visitors.
MAKS is held under the auspices of the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, being traditionally opened by the President of the Russian Federation.
Sri Lanka Presentation with tour operator ”GarndTourVoyage”
11 August, 2009
The Ambassador of Sri Lanka in the Russian Federation, H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga, took part in a Sri Lanka presentation on 11th August, 2009, which was hold by Grand Tour Voyage Travel Company in Radisson SAS Hotel in Moscow. That event was organized for heads of Mostaravel agencies network. H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga narrated about Sri Lanka, main sights, itineraries, souvenirs, and visa formalities. The Ambassador shared news that Tourism Department of the Embassy finalized an audio guide about Sri Lanka on the Russian Language.
This CD will be distributed free of charge among Russian and Sri Lankan travel companies for them to use further on Sri Lanka. Audio guide includes excursion around Colombo, Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya, Dambulla, Kandy, Pinnawala, Nuwara Eliya, Yala, Galle as well as stories about gems, species, ayurveda, masks and national dance. It was mentioned that Russian TV channel will be broadcasted in Sri Lanka Hotels more active soon. For the moment, RTR-planet and 1 ORT are the only Russian speaking channels in Sri Lanka. All hotels are getting and improving a menu card in Russian, which is very helpful for all Russian tourists in Sri Lanka.
There were announced the promising tourism areas in Sri Lanka. Hotels of the Eastern Coast are opened for tourists but they can’t get 5* service there, although beaches are worthy of 7* marks. Russian tourist couldn’t stay indifferent to blue transparent Ocean and white send of Trincomalee, Nilaveli, Baticaloa, and Arugam Bay. Kalpitiya project will provide 4000 new rooms for the country within next 5 years. That is round 1/3 part of the present rooms quantity on the Island. At the end of the speech, the Ambassador Weeratunga mentioned that Sri Lanka is the best place for investments and government is doing its best to protect foreign property.
Presentation of “Rama’s Bridge” & Historical guide book on Sri Lanka
10 August, 2009
In the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Moscow held an event that showcased a film titled ‘Rama’s Bridge’. At the same event the Sri Lankan Embassy presented a Historical guide book on Sri Lanka. The book was published in the Russian language and is a result of the team work of the “Veche” publishing house, the Astravel travel company, the Travel Department of the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Russia and the personal involvement of H.E. the Ambassador of Sri Lanka in Russia Udayanga Weeratunga.
Speech of H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga 10.08.09
The event was attended by mass media representatives from Russian Federal TV channel such as “Russia”, TVC, RBK as well as print media journalists from Interfax, ITAR TASS, Izvestiya, Russian Gazette, Russian Information Agency and some internet information agencies. Officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Ministry of Cultural Affairs of Russia, and Ambassadors of 12 friendship countries and representatives of the film industry in Russian Federation also participated.
The film Rama’s Bridge portrayed the journey of a fearless warrior who walks across the sea over a bridge from India to Sri Lanka. This bridge is 38km and is only seen in ancient maps and heard of in legends. The film shows the dangers faced by him and what waits for him on the other side.
The guideline of the historical guide book about Sri Lanka was created by the Embassy’s travel department. This book is the first Russian edition with a full and detailed description of Sri Lanka, its culture, traditions, historical heritage, nature, travel opportunities and legends. “The main objective for the book was not to simply write a book on Sri Lanka, but to help the Russian people understand my country, culture and traditions better’, said Ambassador Weeratunga. The photos used for the book were from the personal achieves of the Ambassador and the staff of the Sri Lankan embassy.
The author of this project and the book were nominated for an annual Russian Senkevich Prize in the field of tourism in year 2009. At the event, Mr. Sergey Dmitriev, editor-in-chief of “Veche” publishing house, spoke of the warm and tangible support extended by the Sri Lankan Embassy. The Historical guide book about Sri Lanka in the Russian Language has been on sale at all bookshops all over Russia.
Meeting for Association of Russian Tour Operators (ATOR) at the Embassy
02 July, 2009
General Meeting of Association of Russian Tour Operators (ATOR) took place at the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Moscow on 02.07.2009. This is the first time such a meeting was held outside of their usual place. ATOR is the non-government organization which was founded on 18th of January 2007 by the main Russian tour operators. There are more than 50 members of the Group at the moment from different regions of Russia. They accumulate 70% of volume of the Russian travel market.
Ambassador of Sri Lanka Udayanga Weeratunga delivered the keynote addressed and short note about Sri Lanka hot spots and mentioned that the recent victory brought a great opportunity for tourism industry and year 2011 was declared as “Visit Sri Lanka“. Ambassador explained the developing opportunity of Eastern and Northern provinces together with Sri Lankan plans to increase the number of tourist up to 2.5 million of people in 2016.
There were over 30 members from TEZ Tour, Intaer, Astravel, Intourist, Russian Express, Valtex Travel, Lanta-Tur Voyage, Paraisol, KMP Group, Megapolus Group, Startravel, Russian Railways Tours, Solvex Tour, Neva, Capital Tour, Inna Tour, Biblio-Globus, ITC Group, UTS Travel, BSI group, VKO Group, ICS Group, Coral Travel, Pegas Touristic, Natalie Tours, Space Travel, Express Line Travel, S7 Tour, Sunmar, Spectrum Travel, Pac Group.
AGEM commenced with the lightning of the traditional lamp and at the end of the meeting Ambassador hosted a dinner. Ambassador expressed his perfect willingness to support the unified Russian tour operator’s standards and wished prosperity to all members of Association. Finally, Sri Lankan Tea ceremony was conducted and all guests were presented with the best Sri Lankan tea from the Ambassador.
