Newly elected Lankan President to visit India on Nov 29

Colombo, November 19

Newly elected Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will travel to India on November 29 at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Tuesday.

He made the announcement after meeting Rajapaksa on his first day in office after being sworn in as the country’s new President on Monday. This is likely to be Rajapaksa’s first official visit abroad after assuming office.

Jaishankar, who arrived here on an unannounced two-day visit, said President Rajapaksa has accepted Prime Minister Modi’s invitation to visit India on November 29. He became the first foreign dignitary to call on President Rajapaksa.

Sri Lankan officials said the minister carried a letter of personal congratulations to Rajapaksa from PMModi and the invitation to visit India.

“A warm meeting with Sri Lanka President @GotabayaR. Conveyed PM @narendramodi’s message of a partnership for shared peace, progress, prosperity & security. Confident that under his leadership, #IndiaSriLanka relations would reach greater heights,” Jaishankar tweeted after the meeting.

Rajapaksa stormed to victory in Sri Lanka’s presidential elections, the results of which came on Sunday.

Modi telephoned Rajapaksa on Sunday to congratulate him on his electoral win and invited him to visit India as his first official foreign tour.

Rajapaksa is the younger brother of the former president Mahinda Rajapaksa.

He is credited with helping end the island nation’s long civil war against the LTTE) during his tenure as the defence secretary. — PTI