Colombo, Sri Lanka (CU)_ Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan is visiting Sri Lanka this month. Foreign Secretary Admiral Prof. Jayanath Colombage confirmed the news that PM Imran Khan will lead a high-level delegation to Sri Lanka on February 23. This will be the first visit by a head of state to the country since pandemic. The official sources say that PM Imran Khan will pay a short visit to Sri Lanka and stay in the country for few days under a biosecurity bubble. The main purpose of the visit is to improve the bilateral relations between the two countries.
Prof. Colombage referred to the high-level mutual relationships that the two countries have maintained over the years and also highlighted that Pakistan had stood by Sri Lanka during difficult times. He noted that the friendship between the two nations have evolved stronger over the years. He expressed hopes over the PM’s visit. He said, “We would wish to see bilateral relations, especially concerning trade, grow between the two countries. This will be a significant visit”.
When asked about the details of the visit, Prof. Colombage said that PM Imran Khan will possibly stay for a few days in Sri Lanka and will meet President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. He said, “Since we have this biosafety bubble, you can’t spend a lot of time, and therefore the activities will be limited to just high-level meetings. The plan is for him to meet both the President and the Prime Minister”.
The Foreign Secretary said that the country hosted the visits of high-level international delegations also in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic situation. He said, “We had former US State Secretary Mike Pompeo, a top-level Chinese delegation, and Indian Minister of External Affairs Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar visit the country”. The Pakistan High Commission in Colombo announced that arrangements are being made for PM Imran Khan’s visit to Sri Lanka and said that further information will be available in the near future.
