At a ceremony held at the Elysée Palace in Paris, Ambassador Buddhi K. Athauda presented his letter of credence to Co-Prince of the principality of Andorra, President Emmanuel Macron on 12 April 2019.
Addressing the group of Ambassadors present, President Macron explained to them his role as the Co-Prince and encouraged all Ambassadors to actively engage in consolidating bilateral relations with Andorra.
Ambassador Athauda while presenting his letter of credence conveyed to the Co-Prince, greetings from President Maithripala Sirisena and expressed his commitment to further deepening the existing cooperation between Andorra and Sri Lanka particularly in the fields of investment promotion and tourism.
The Principality of Andorra is a landlocked microstate located in the eastern Pyrenees which is bordered by France and Spain. President of France and Bishop of Urgell, Spain serve as Co-Princes to the Principality of Andorra. Ambassador Athauda previously presented his letter of credence to Bishop of Urgell, Joan Enric Vives Sicília in November 2018.
Ambassador Athauda has extensive experience in the field of Mobile Satellite Telecommunication industry sector. He was with the management team at Iridium LLC, the group that developed the first-ever mobile satellite phone in the world during the period of late 1990s to early 2000 . He was appointed as Ambassador of Sri Lanka to France with concurrent accreditation to the Principalities of Andorra and Monaco and Permanent Delegate of Sri Lanka to UNESCO by The President of Sri Lanka, His Excellency Maithripala Sirisena in October 2017. Ambassador Athauda has enjoyed a diplomatic career spanning over ten years and has previously served as Consul General of Sri Lanka in Frankfurt, Germany and Ambassador Extraordinary and plenipotentiary of Sri Lanka to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. During his posting in Germany, He cofounded Diplomatic Council, a global think tank with consultative status with the United Nations.
