NEW DELHI: After lending its support to India’s fight against Pakistan-sponsored terrorism, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe arrived in the national capital on Tuesday.
He met Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj and is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday. His visit has come at a time when Sri Lanka along with other member states of the
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) boycotted the Summit scheduled in Islamabad condemning terrorism in the region.
The majority pull out of the countries have been unprecedented in the history of the regional grouping. The Indian quest to isolate Pakistan regionally came after the attack masterminded by Jaish-e-Mohammad on the Army base resulted in the death of 19 soldiers.
The pull-out has been a strong statement of support by the South Asian countries and that they see their future with India. Earlier in the day while speaking at the New Zealand Parliament House, Wickramasinghe said that after the failure of SAARC to deliver "acceptable results" for all members it would compel Sri Lanka to find other "viable options".
"This year's SAARC Summit is in jeopardy due to the war prevailing on the border. However, as the SAARC plays an important role, carrying out the Summit is a matter of great importance. I explained that while the failure of SAARC to deliver acceptable results for all members would spell out a bleak future, it would also compel Sri Lanka to look towards other viable options," Wickramasinghe said in his speech in New Zealand.
During his three-day visit, Wickramasinghe will also hold meetings Road Transport and Highways and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari and Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan.
Before leaving for Colombo, the Sri Lankan Prime Minister will be attending the plenary session of India Economic Summit. This is Wickramasinghe’s second visit to India after taking over as the Prime Minister of the Southern neighbor.
Prime Minister Modi had visited Sri Lanka as his government’s focus has been India’s immediate neighborhood. Modi had announced on e-visa on arrival for Sri Lankans apart from a $318 million Line of
Credit for upgradation of Sri Lankan Railways and to develop Trincomalee as “petroleum hub”.