17.6.2008
Foreign
Minister Rohitha Bogollagama met in Delhi on 16th June
with Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India and with
Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, Minister of External Affairs of
India. The Minister handed over to the two Indian leaders
the letters inviting them to the 15th SAARC Summit and
its antecedent meeting of the Council of Ministers to
be held in Colombo from 31st July to 3rd August 2008,
while also briefing them of current developments in Sri
Lanka and consulting on the key issues before SAARC.
During
the summit Manmohan Singh will hand over the SAARC chair
to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Sri
Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollogama who arrived
in New Delhi on Sunday night, met Foreign Minister Pranab
Mukherjee on Monday to apprise him about the security
situation in Sri Lanka in the wake of recent LTTE (Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam) attacks.
Minister
Bogollagama emphasized the positive outcome of the recently
held election to the Eastern Provincial Council, which
took place on the basis of almost all the major political
parties in Sri Lanka participating in the contest and
with an electoral turnout of over 65%.
The
Government of Sri Lanka is now looking forward to working
closely with the newly elected Chief Minister and his
Board of Ministers, for the successful application of
the provisions of the 13th Amendment and for the rapid
development of the Province.
The
Foreign Minister emphasized that continuity of the valuable
work done by the past Chairs of SAARC, would be a guiding
principle for Sri Lanka’s stewardship of the Association.
At the same time, Sri Lanka would endeavor to engage the
peoples of the region as closely as possible in the work
and programmes of SAARC. Given the challenges posed by
the increase in food prices and energy costs, regional
responses for food security and energy self sufficiency
would be high on the Summit agenda.
Mr.
Bogollagama’s discussions in Delhi took place in
an atmosphere of great cordiality and warmth. The Prime
Minister and the External Affairs Minister appreciated
the briefing on current developments in Sri Lanka. They
expressed their thanks for the invitations and affirmed
that India is looking forward to working closely with
the host country Sri Lanka, for the success of the forthcoming
SAARC Summit in Colombo.
Minister
Bogollagama prior to his departure on the evening of 16th
June, met with the New Delhi based media at the Foreign
Courtesy - Asian
Tribune