Sri Lankan PM wishes to strengthen ties with Pakistan

COLOMBO: Newly re-elected Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has said he is looking forward to strengthening ties between Pakistan and Colombo.

On a social media website Twitter, Rajapaksa said, “Many thanks to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for your phone call and warm wishes. I look forward to mutual high-level visits between our countries to strengthen our friendly bilateral ties.”

Many thanks to Pakistan Prime Minister @ImranKhanPTI for your phone call and warm wishes. I look forward to mutual high-level visits between our countries to strengthen our friendly bilateral ties.

— Mahinda Rajapaksa (@PresRajapaksa) August 8, 2020

His tweet comes a day after Prime Minister Imran telephoned his Sri Lankan counterpart and extended a cordial invitation to him for a visit to Pakistan.

As per details, Prime Minister Imran Khan and his Sri Lankan counterpart Mahinda Rajapaksa had a telephonic conversation on Friday.

During the telephonic conversation, PM Imran Khan felicitated Mahinda Rajapaksa on his party’s success in the recent elections and assured him of Pakistan’s full cooperation in all fields.

Both leaders agreed to further strengthen bilateral relations. On this occasion, the COVID-19 situation and its negative impacts on economy industries and politics were also discussed.

The Rajapaksa brothers secured a two-thirds majority in parliamentary elections on Friday. Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka Podujana Party (SLPP) won 145 seats, according to Election Commission results. Official results showed the party received 6.8 million of the votes cast in Wednesday’s election.