Monday March 5th, 2012in Farewell 0 Likes

Welcome & Farewell the Staff

Embassy welcomes the DCM, bids farewell to Ms. Gunasena
05th March 2012
H.E. the Ambassador and the staff warmly welcome the newly appointed Deputy Chief of Mission, Maj. General Nandana Udawatta and the Consular Officer Ms. Nayomi Serasinghe whilst bidding farewell to Ms. Ruwini Gunasena, who completed her assignment as the Consular Officer in the Sri Lanka Embassy in Russia.
Welcoming Maj. General Nandana Udawatta, H.E Weeratunga expressed his pleasure to have the Major General, who led the largest battalion of Sri Lanka Army to successfully ending the 30 year old civil war. Further H. E. the Ambassador appreciated Ms. Gunasena for her committed and diligent work and for the efficient and effective function carried out for the betterment of the mission’s procedures and operations; at the same time expressed his expectations of Ms. Serasinghe to fulfill the job functions assigned efficiently and effectively in the time to come.
The speech in return, Ms. Gunasena expressed her gratitude for support, assistance and warm welcome in Russia. Great appreciation was expressed to the Ambassador of Sri Lanka Udayanga Weeratunga and Madam Uma Weeratunga not only for support in her work but also for taking care of the family during their stay in Russia.

International Women’s Day was celebrated at the Embassy with the Staff. Ladies of the Embassy including Mrs. Uma Weeratunga and Ms. Sithara Weeratunga received gifts from H.E. the Ambassador. The staff enjoyed a special dinner arranged by Mrs. Weeraunga.

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Friday February 24th, 2012in Meeting 0 Likes

Meeting Dep. Foreign Minister

Meeting the Newly Appointed Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Hon. Igor Morgulov
24th February 2012

On 24th February H.E the Ambassador paid a courtesy call to the newly appointed Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Hon. Igor Morgulov. Deputy Minister and the Ambassador had extended discussions about current political and economic situation of Sri Lanka and long standing diplomatic relations between two nations.
Hon. Igor Morgulov is a graduate of the Institute of Asian and African Studies of Moscow State University In 1983 and joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1991. He has held various diplomatic appointments in the Ministry’s central apparatus and abroad (China, USA, Japan). Hon. Morgulov was appointed as the Director of the First Asia Department in 2009 and the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation since December 2011.
Ambassador handed over the congratulatory notes addressed to the Hon. Sergey Lavrov from the Minister of External Affairs of Sri Lanka Hon. G.L. Peiris on the occasion of the 55th anniversary since establishment of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and Russia. Further an appreciation note for the continuous support from the Russian Federation in defeating terrorism and concluding the humanitarian operations was also handed over.

The Deputy Minister and Ambassador had friendly discussions on an array of subjects such as: Agreements, Air Services, Tourism, Tea, Education and Culture. Ambassador mentioned about the upcoming UN HRC resolution against Sri Lanka and expectations of the support from the Russian Federation in defeating the resolution. The Deputy Director of the second Asia Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mr. Oleg Audeev, Mr. Andrey Atmanov participated the meeting. Head of Chancery, Mr. Lal Kumara Gamage and Second Secretary, Mr. Nuwan Ratnayake accompanied the Ambassador to the occasion.

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Wednesday February 22nd, 2012in Workshop 0 Likes

Tourism Workshops with Intaer

Seminar on Sri Lanka Tourism
22nd of February 2012

A seminar on “Sri Lanka Tourism” for tour agents was held on 22nd of February 2012 at the residence of H.E. the Ambassador in collaboration with Intaer Tour operator. 47 tour agents took part at the event.
The Ambassador of Sri Lanka H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga delivered an informative presentation on developments of Sri Lanka Tourism industry, current developments on infrastructure, briefing on Sri Lanka, main itineraries, heritage, cuisine, and visa formalities etc. All participants were made well aware on Sri Lanka as a tourist destination.

Followed by the Ambassador’s speech, the presentation on Sri Lankan Airlines flight operations to Moscow was done by Ms. Anna Korolkova, Director General of Sri Lankan Airlines office in Moscow.

The raffle draw was arranged by the sponsoring tour operator, Intaer Tour to select a winner to participate the familiarizing tour to Sri Lanka. Further the company presented fact and details about their company and recommended tourist destinations.

End of the seminar, participants enjoyed a Sri Lankan lunch and Ceylon tea. Participants received gift packs with Ceylon tea, Audio Guide CD, tourism posters and other tourism promotional materials from the Ambassador.

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Tuesday February 14th, 2012in Receptions 0 Likes

Reception PRODEXPO 2012

Official reception to mark Sri Lanka’s participation at PRODEXPO 2012
14th February 2012

A reception was hosted by Ambassador Udayanga Weeratunga on 14 February 2012 to mark Sri Lanka’s participation in the PRODEXPO 2012 trade exhibition at the residence of the Ambassador. The event was attended by 100 distinguished guests both from the tea industry of Russia and Sri Lanka as well as from the Russia’s diplomatic community.

In the Ambassador’s address, he highlighted that the Ceylon tea industry had a 32.7% market share in Russia out of which 15.8% was the import of pre-packed teas. He went on to explain that major tea brands in Russia such as Akbar, Lipton, Orimi Trade (Princess Noori, Gita, Yava), Ahmad Tea and the brands of May Company were the major players with 75% of total market share and that Ceylon Tea promotion in Russia and the CIS countries were paramount to maintain market positions amidst competition from other producing nations.
Following the sumptuous buffet dinner, the Ambassador invited his guests to enjoy a cup of freshly brewed Ceylon Tea.

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Monday February 13th, 2012in Exhibition 0 Likes

PRODEXPO 2012

“PRODEXPO – 2012″ Trade Fair in Moscow
13th to 17th February 2012
Sri Lanka Tea Board represented by the Tea Promotion Unit at the Sri Lanka Embassy in Moscow, participated in the 19th annual “PRODEXPO 2012”. It was held at the Expocentr fairgrounds in Moscow, from 13 to 17 February 2012. The exhibition is held under the patronage of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, Ministry of Agriculture and the Moscow Government and organized by Expocentr. The event was graced by Ambassador Udayanga Weeratunga who declared open the Sri Lanka stand.

Together with Sri Lanka Tea Board, 04 leading Sri Lankan tea exporting companies also participated, namely Ceylon Tea Bags (Pvt) Ltd, Ceylon Tea Land (Pvt) Ltd, Nature’s Pride (Pvt) Ltd and Mabroc Teas (Pvt) Ltd. Additionally, 05 leading Sri Lankan exporters such as Millenium Teas (Pvt) Ltd, Finlay Tea Solutions (Pvt) Ltd, Jafferjee Brothers, Imperial Tea Exports (Pvt) Ltd and Ceylon Fresh teas (Pvt) Ltd also brought strength to the Sri Lanka representation in the exhibition. Leading tea exporter Akbar Brothers were represented by their partner Sapsan Group of Companies. Orimi Trade who is a key Russian buyer was also present. The Tea Board of India and tea distributors representing teas from China, Ukraine etc were present. It was a successful event for the Sri Lankan exhibitors who received several trade inquiries and potential business partnerships.
The Tea Promotion Unit held a public tea service throughout the period which was well attended by both public and participants.

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Monday February 6th, 2012in Receptions 0 Likes

64th Independence Day Reception

64th Independence Day Reception
6th February 2012
The Embassy organized a Reception to celebrate the 64th Independence Day on 6th February. The event was attended by the Ambassadors and the other Diplomatic community representing the Embassies based in Moscow, the officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and the Sri Lankan community based in Russia among others. H.E. Zamir Kabulov, Director, Second Asia Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia participated as the chief guest.
H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga made use of the welcome speech to brief the guests on the present situation of Sri Lanka. During the speech the progress achieved by Sri Lanka since concluding the fight against the LTTE terrorists in 2009 was highlighted with emphasis on the economic and social development in the former conflict affected areas.
Ambassador Weeratunga also appreciated the strong relations between Sri Lanka and Russia since establishment of diplomatic relations in 1957 and mentioned the recent progress of the relations. He took the opportunity to extend congratulations to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation on the 55th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Speaking at the occasion, H.E. Zamir Kabulov congratulated Sri Lanka on the occasion of the 64th Anniversary of Independence and on the 55th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and Russia. He spoke of the historically strong and friendly bilateral relations between the two countries and expressed Russia’s strong interest to work together with Sri Lanka in the future.

At the end of the Reception the guests were treated to a traditional Sri Lankan dinner. A special event of the Reception which in particular captured the attention of the audience were performance of traditional dancing and Sri Lankan songs sung by a group of Sri Lankan students from the Kursk State Medical University.

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Saturday February 4th, 2012in Celebration 0 Likes

64th Independence Day

64th Independence Day Celebration
04th February 2012
The Official ceremony of the 64th Independence Day of Sri Lanka took place at the Embassy premises on 4th February 2012. Commencing the event H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga hoisted the National Flag of Sri Lanka and National Anthem was sung by Participants of the event. In honor of the war heroes who sacrificed their lives and limbs to protect and safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the motherland a two minutes silence was observed.
Buddhist priests residing in Moscow conducted the Buddhist religious ceremonies and blessed Sri Lanka and the Embassy on the occasion. The Independence Day messages of H.E. the President, Hon. Prime Minister and Hon. Minister of External Affairs of Sri Lanka were read out by H.E the Ambassador, Mr. Lal Kumara Gamage and Ms. Shashika Somaratne respectively.
Speaking on the occasion H.E. the Ambassador mentioned the significance of the event and highlighted the key aspects of the message of H.E. the President. He urged the Embassy to work together for the prosperity of Sri Lanka in line with the government policy set out in Mahinda Chintana.

The celebration concluded with a special meal which had been organized by Mrs. Uma Weeratunga and the staff of the Embassy. The participants of the event were treated to a traditional Sri Lankan meal of Milk Rice, Kokis, Weli Thalapa etc.

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Tuesday January 3rd, 2012in Workshop 0 Likes

Workshop with Grand Voyage

Tourism Workshop with “Grand Tour Voyage”
3rd April 2012
Embassy of Sri Lanka in Moscow organized a workshop on Sri Lanka in collaboration with multi-tour operator “Grand Tour Voyage” on the April 3, 2012 the seminar was attended by 40 managers from various agencies. This workshop is one of the continued the series of seminars that the Embassy of Sri Lanka organizes.
The seminar was opened by H.E. Mr. Udayanga Weeratunga, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Russia. He explained about the features of stay in Sri Lanka, the visa procedures, the Sri Lankan souvenirs, as well as of the main tour routes and sights of the island. H.E. Mr. Weeratunga told about regions and cities of Sri Lanka, and even mentioned some famous legends and interesting stories, which certainly helped the agencies to understand Sri Lanka better and to get an inside view of the country. The Ambassador noted strong growth and development of tourism in Sri Lanka – in the past year 2011 Sri Lanka received 21,385 tourists from Russia, which is 61% more than in 2010.

The Ambassador presented the new Tourism Catalog on Sri Lanka. The book contains complete information about the country, its history, culture, attractions and hotels of the island.

The seminar was also attended by SriLankan Airlines representative. The Head of Moscow Office of SriLankan Airlines Ms. Anna Korolkova spoke about the airline, services on board and also explained about the new product – Air taxi, which allows tourists to reduce the time for internal travel in the island.

During the workshop, all participants received gifts from the Embassy: audio CD-guide, brochures on Sri Lanka and the SriLankan Airlines, the famous Ceylon tea, and of course, the above mentioned Catalog on Sri Lanka.

At the end of the seminar the representatives of “Grand Tour Voyage” and Ms. Julia Shestakova, Tourism Director of the company, told the travel agents about the main tourist packages and hotels in Sri Lanka. Later, all participants were invited to a Sri Lankan dinner, organized by the Embassy.

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Monday January 2nd, 2012in Vacation 0 Likes

Winter Vacation 2012

Winter vacation 2012
January 2012
This winter vacation, we spent a beautiful time in our motherland Sri Lanka. I decided to show my family a few olden cities, about more than 2500 years Great History. On the first day, we all went to Wilpatthu Safari, but we were unlucky we couldn’t see much wild life. Then we continued our trip to Anuradhapura, and stayed in a luxury boutique hotel called Ulagalla Walavva. On the next day we went to Mihinthale & Anuradhapura. Our next destination was in Dambulla, and we stayed in my favorite hotel called Heritance Kandalama. My family spent a good time in Kandalama special, my son Diyon loved Eco Park. I want to special thank to the hotel staff, not only for the tasty food but also for the Hot Air Balloon Ride in the early morning, that was the first time i and my wife rode a hot air balloon. Of course we were impressed how our country is beautiful, I got a lot of amazing photos.
After that, we relaxed in a white sand beach Pasikudha and stayed in Malu Malu Beach Resort, My daughter Sithara’s favorite beach.

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Friday November 18th, 2011in Celebration 1 Likes

Relics of Lord Buddha in Russia

Sri Lanka donates Sacred Relics of Lord Buddha to Republic of Kalmykia
18th November 2011

At the dawn of the cold November morning Buddhist devotees in the Republic of Kalmykia and Russian Federation hurried to the main temple in Elista, the capital of Kalmykia, to pay homage to sacred relics of Lord Buddha from Sri Lanka. The sacred relics were sent to Kalmykia by the President of Sri Lanka H.E Mahinda Rajapaksa at a special request of former President of Kalmykia H.E. Kirsan Ilyumshinov during his visit to Sri Lanka. The sacred relics were on display to public homage for 7 days from the 18th November 2011.

The ceremony of the sacred relics was declared open by the Sri Lankan Ambassador to the Russian Federation H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga, and on behalf of the people of Sri Lanka and the President Mahinda Rajapaksa Ambassador Weeratunga congratulated the people of Kalmykia on that momentous day. Also Ambassador Weeratunga appreciated the steps taken by H.E. Kirsan Illyumshinov‐Former President of the Republic of Kalmykia and Ven. Pallekande Ratanasara Thero for the development of Buddhism in Kalmykia and promised to give utmost support from Sri Lanka.

In addition to the thousands of Buddhist devotees, Head of the State of Kalmykia Alexey Orlov, Ven. Shadzhin Lama of Kalmykia Telo Tulku Rinpoche Thero, Ven. Pallekande Ratanasara Thero and several parliamentarians, Ven. Buddhist monks and other prominent personalities paid homage to the sacred relics.

Ambassador Weeratunga also met the Head of the State of Kalmykia Alexey Orlov and discussed the development of Buddhist relations between Kalmykia and Sri Lanka

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