PM Modi holds talks with Srilankan counterpart Rajapaksa, reviewed the broad framework of bilateral ties

At the bilateral summit with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, PM Modi said that he is confident that Rajapaksa government's policies will embrace the bond between the two countries. For Rajapaksa, the summit was first diplomatic engagement with any foreign leader after he was sworn in as prime minister.

New Delhi: Prime minister Narendra Modi held a virtual bilateral talk with his Srilankan counterpart Mahindra Rajapaksa on Saturday where both the side comprehensively reviewed the broad framework of the bilateral relations between the two countries.

Addressing the bilateral summit, Prime Minister Modi said, “The relations between India and Sri Lanka are thousands of years old. According to my government’s neighbourhood first policy and SAGAR doctrine, we give special priority to relations between the two countries”.

In his opening remarks at a virtual bilateral summit, Modi said he was confident that the massive electoral victory of the ruling party in Sri Lanka backed by the Rajapaksa government's policies will facilitate deeper cooperation between the two countries.

"An opportunity has come to begin a new chapter in India-Sri Lanka ties after your party’s electoral victory. People from both countries are looking at us with new hope and expectations," Modi reiterated.

Last month, Rajapaksa was sworn in as Sri Lankan Prime Minister for a fresh term after his party, Sri Lanka People’s Front, secured a two-thirds majority in the parliamentary polls.

During the virtual talk, Srilankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa went on to express his gratitude for the way in which India worked for other countries during the COVID19 pandemic.

According to a statement from the ministry of external affairs, the virtual bilateral summit is PM Modi's first such virtual engagement with a neighbouring country and also PM Rajapaksa's first diplomatic engagement with a leader of a foreign country after he was sworn in as the Prime Minister on August 9, 2020.

It was learnt that during the meeting, the two leaders deliberated on a host of issues like ways to further deepen anti-terror cooperation, boost overall defence and trade ties as well as the implementation of India’s development projects in Sri Lanka.

Later, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa thanked India for the successful operation to douse off the fire on MT new Diamond ship saying it provided an opportunity for greater cooperation between the two countries.

The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) had deployed six ICG ships and two aircraft for fire fighting and pollution response.

“I express my gratitude for the way in which India worked for other countries during the COVID19 pandemic,” said Sri Lankan PM.

Earlier, ahead of the virtual bilateral meeting with PM Narendra Modi, Mahinda Rajapaksa, in a tweet, said he looks forward to reviewing the multifaceted bilateral relationship between the two nations.

"Looking forward to interacting with PM @narendramodi at the virtual summit scheduled for 26th September. We expect to review the multifaceted bilateral relationship between our nations, ranging from politics, economics, defence, tourism and other areas of mutual interest," Mahinda Rajapaksa said.

India and Srilanka share a strong diplomatic connection and the two countries are also close on economic terms with India being the island's largest trading partner. There are deep racial and cultural links between the two countries as well.

During India-Sri Lanka Virtual Bilateral Summit today, Prime Minister Modi announced grant assistance of 15 million US dollars for promotion of Buddhist ties between the two countries, Amit Narang, Joint Secretary for Indian Ocean Region Division of the Ministry of External Affairs said.

The ministry also informed that India and Sri Lanka are working to strengthen bilateral financial cooperation. India has extended 400 million dollars currency swap facility to Central Bank of Sri Lanka to assist with the economic recovery and tackle COVID19 related disruptions.

It is worth noting that India will facilitate the visit of a delegation of Buddhist pilgrims from Sri Lanka in the first inaugural flight to Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh.

Moreover, during the bilateral summit, Sri Lankan PM Mahinda Rajapaksa made a special mention of the Jaffna Cultural Centre, an iconic project built with Indian assistance. The Centre is almost ready and PM Rajapaksa extended an invitation to PM Modi to inaugurate the project.