Media

Minister of External Affairs signs MoU on Consultations with Minister of Kazakhstan
24th-25th May 2012
Minister of External Affairs of Sri Lanka Hon. Prof. G.L. Peiris visited Kazakhstan during 24 – 25 May on the invitation of Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Hon. Yerzhan Kazykhanov. Minister Kazykhanov welcomed Minister Peiris to Kazakhstan and commented on the historic nature of this visit which took place on the verge of 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka.
Recalling the bilateral meeting between Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev and President Mahinda Rajapaksa on the sidelines of the 15th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Minister Kazykhanov emphasized the need for further meetings at the highest level between the two countries. The Kazakhstan Foreign Minister also referred to the MoU on Consultations which was to be signed following the discussion between the two Foreign Ministers, noting that it would pave the way for Political Consultations between the two foreign ministries.

Minister Peiris mentioned that since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1992 no visits were taken place to Kazakhstan and recalled the warm and cordial meeting between the two presidents on 18th June 2011 in St. Petersburg.

Minister of External Affairs of Sri Lanka took the opportunity to brief Minister Kazykhanov regarding political situation in Sri Lanka and the structural programs being implemented by the government aimed at national reconciliation and a long lasting political solution. He explained that Sri Lanka has come through turbulence to stability which the country presently enjoys and invited Minister Kazykhanov to visit Sri Lanka and witness the development in Sri Lanka.

Both Ministers agreed that Sri Lanka and Kazakhstan should move towards strengthening ties in economic and trade spheres as well as to start processing of the pending bilateral agreements. Speaking of the need to enhance trader volume between the two countries, Minister Peiris mentioned the high quality apparel products of Sri Lanka which could be aimed at niche markets and also referred to Sri Lankan (Ceylon) Tea, Cinnamon, Gem and Jewellery and high quality ceramic products of Sri Lanka as being amongst the potential exports to Kazakhstan. While noting the visible growth in the tourism sector in Sri Lanka Minister Peiris proposed establishing air connection between Sri Lanka and Kazakhstan to promote greater people to people contact between the two countries.

On Regional and multilateral cooperation the two sides agreed to continue to work closely together. Minister Kazykhanov commended Sri Lanka’s leadership role in the Asian Cooperation Dialogue and speaking of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), it was noted Kazakhstan will fully support Sri Lanka in the SCO and that it will be Sri Lanka’s advocate.

Signing of the MoU on Consultations between Ministry of External Affairs of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan took place following the bilateral meeting. Minister Peiris signed the MoU on behalf of the Sri Lankan party while Minister Kazykhanov signed on behalf of the Kazakhstan party. Thereafter a joint press conference took place with the participation of the two Ministers.

Ambassador of Sri Lanka in the Russian Federation concurrently accredited to Kazakhstan H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga, Additional Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs of Sri Lanka Madam Kshenuka Senewiratne, and First Secretary of the Embassy of Sri Lanka joined Minister Peiris during the discussions.

Related Images:

Minister G.L. Peiris Holds Bilateral Discussions with Minister Sergey Lavrov
23rd May 2012

Minister of External Affairs of Sri Lanka Hon. Prof. G.L. Peiris visited Russia on 23rd May on an invitation of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. During the official discussions on 23 May at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, both parties congratulated on the completion of 55 successful years of diplomatic relations.
Welcoming Minister Peiris to Russia, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation H.E. Sergey Lavrov observed that the relationship between the two countries is going in the right direction. Referring to the visit of President Mahinda Rajapaksa to Russia on two occasions in 2010 and 2011 respectively as well as regular exchanges between the countries; Minister Lavrov mentioned that the Sri Lanka and Russia share extensive relations on an array of spheres.
Two sides discussed a broad range of issues on bilateral and multilateral cooperation. Referring to the legal framework of the relationship Minister Lavrov mentioned the signing of the agreements on cooperation between Prosecutor General’s Office of Russia and Attorney General’s Department of Sri Lanka and on Civil Aviation recently. Both Ministers discussed the pending bilateral agreements and agreed to take necessary action for early signing of these agreements.

Both sides noted the satisfactory nature of the economic relations between Sri Lanka and Russia. Commenting on the resumption of regular flights between Moscow and Colombo Minister Lavrov said that tourism cooperation is going well.

Minister Peiris took the opportunity to thank Minister Lavrov for annual grant scholarships by the Government of the Russian Federation, which has been increased to 35. He also referred to the scholarships offered to Russian citizens by the Sri Lankan Government which was highly appreciated by Minister Lavrov.

Speaking of the excellent understanding both countries have on a range of multilateral issues, Minister Lavrov assured continuous support to Sri Lanka internationally. In response Minister Peiris thanked his Russian counterpart for his country’s continued support to Sri Lanka on human rights issues. He stressed the importance of home grown solutions as the public could relate to these.

Speaking of LLRC Minister Peiris said that the report was presented in parliament and that the recommendations of the report would be implemented in a structured manner. Minister Peiris also explained Minister Lavrov about the present political situation in Sri Lanka as well as the initiatives of the government for early implementation of the LLRC recommendations.

On regional cooperation Minister Lavrov confirmed Russian support for Sri Lanka to become an observer of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. The two sides also discussed the Asian Cooperation Dialogue and SAARC.

In conclusion Minister Peiris invited Minister Lavrov to visit Sri Lanka and witness the developments in Sri Lanka first hand.
A joint press conference took place following the discussions.

Ambassador of Sri Lanka in the Russian Federation H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga, Additional Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs of Sri Lanka Madam Kshenuka Senewiratne, and senior diplomatic officials of the Embassy joined Minister Peiris during the discussions.

Related Images:

Signing of Air-Services Agreement
26th March 2012
Turning a new chapter in Sri Lanka Russia bilateral relations, a new Air Services Agreement between Sri Lanka and the Russian Federation was signed in Moscow on 26.03.2012. H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga, Ambassador of Sri Lanka in the Russian Federation signed the Agreement on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka while Mr. Valery M. Okulov, Deputy Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation signed on behalf of the Government of the Russian Federation. The new Air Services Agreement replaces the Air Transport Agreement between Ceylon and the U.S.S.R signed on 22 February1964.
During the discussion which preceded the signing ceremony Mr. Okulov commended the bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and Russia and noted the commencement of direct flights of SriLankan Airlines and Aeroflot between Colombo and Moscow in 2011. He also noted the significance of the bilateral meetings between President Mahinda Rajapaksa and President Dmitry Medvedev as well as the meeting between Mr. Igor Levitin, Minister of Transport of Russia and Hon. Priyankara Jayaratne, Minister of Civil Aviation of Sri Lanka on 5th August 2011.
H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga thanked the Deputy Minister and the Russian Government for expediting the process of signing the new Air Services Agreement. He briefed the significance of the signing of the Agreement and also the present development progress of Sri Lanka tourism.

Tourism Industry is booming in Sri Lanka with over 60% increase in the arrival of Russian tourists alone in 2011. H.E. Weeratunga also explained the significance of the new Air Services Agreement in connection with the potential for expansion of economic relations between Sri Lanka and Russia. He also took the opportunity to thank the Russian Government for the support extended to Sri Lanka especially at the recently concluded UN Human Rights Council Session.

In addition H.E. Weeratunga mentioned the progress of the construction of the Second International Airport of Sri Lanka in Mattala and noted that it would be opened for international traffic in November 2012. He also noted the construction of internationally reputed hotels in Sri Lanka such as the two Shangri La Hotel projects in Colombo and Hambantota as well as the other infrastructure projects for development of Hotels in Sri Lanka.

In conclusion H.E. Weeratunga reminded of the invitation extended by the Minister of Civil Aviation of Sri Lanka for his counterpart to visit Sri Lanka and also invited Mr. Okulov to visit Sri Lanka for the opening of Mattala International Airport of Sri Lanka in November 2012.

The ceremony was attended by Ms. Marina V. Gribanova, Deputy Director, Department of International Cooperation of Ministry of Transport of Russia, Mr. Alexander M. Tumanov, Consultant, Department of State Policy of Civil Aviation, Ministry of Transport of Russia, Ms. Daria L. Orlova, General Expert, Department of International Cooperation and Mr. Andrey Atmanov, Second Asia Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia and the Diplomatic officials of Embassy of Sri Lanka in the Russian Federation.

Related Images: