Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his Palestinian counterpart President Mahmoud Abbas met at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo today and held discussions on measures to further enhance the cordial relations exist between the two nations.
President Rajapaksa warmly welcomed the Palestinian President who arrived in Colombo last night on a two-day official visit at the invitation of the President. A Guard of Honour was accorded to the visiting President at the Presidential Secretariat this morning.
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During the meeting, the two leaders have emphasized attention on the need to further develop relations between political and economic and cultural spheres for the benefit of people of both countries, a media release issued by the President's media division said.
President Abbas has appreciated Sri Lanka's continued support to the Palestinian cause and expressed hope that Sri Lanka would further advance in the future under President Rajapaksa's leadership after achieving peace and stability.
President Rajapaksa has said that Sri Lanka appreciates the Palestinian Foreign Relations Commission for expressing solidarity and support during Sri Lanka's war against terrorism.
He has invited Palestinian business community to explore opportunities to invest in Sri Lanka as the country is now experiencing the benefits of peace.
The President has noted that Sri Lanka is providing assistance in the field of education in Palestine and currently Sri Lanka is funding a project to train pre-school and grade-one teachers in the Palestinian Education Department and has also granted scholarships for needy students.
He has expressed the possibility of offering further opportunities to Palestinian students to pursue studies in the fields of medicine and engineering.
The two leaders also discussed ways to enhance the cooperation in the field tourism and the development of diplomatic cooperation between the two countries.
Delegations of the two countries also held bilateral talks today with the Minister of External Affairs Prof. G.L. Peiris leading the Sri Lankan delegation and Palestinian Foreign Minister Dr. Riyad Al-Malik leading the Palestinian delegation.
Minister of External Affairs Professor G.L. Peiris, Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa, Minister of Trade and Commerce Rishad Bathiyutheen, parliamentarian Sajin de Vas Gunawardena, Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga and the Secretary to the Ministry of External Affairs Karunathilaka Amunugama also participated in the discussion.
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