Friday, 20th June 2014
External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris with his Chilean counterpart Minister Heraldo Muñoz
External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris met his Chilean counterpart Minister Heraldo Muñoz on the sidelines of the 50th anniversary of the G77 Summit in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. Minister Muñoz noted that G77 was very important to Chile. He spoke about the need for an egalitarian international order and the important role a grouping like G77 could play in issues of global importance such as climate change and poverty alleviation which affect a majority of countries. In this context, the significance of South-South co-operation was underlined.
Prof. Peiris agreed with the Chilean Minister’s comment about the need for an egalitarian international order, and explained that the inequitable treatment of Sri Lanka was precisely due to the absence of such a system. He briefed the Chilean Minister on developments in Sri Lanka, highlighting the degree of progress made in a brief time period since the end of the conflict.
Prof. Peiris said that the majority of countries that supported the resolution against Sri Lanka in the Human Rights Council represented a particular regional grouping. In this context, he questioned whether the criticism of Sri Lanka could validly be termed ‘international opinion’. Expressing disappointment that most countries in Latin America had also voted against Sri Lanka at the HRC, Minister Peiris requested Chile to take a fresh look at the issues involved in their proper context. The Chilean Foreign Minister agreed that it was important to be informed of the facts in detail. Minister Muñoz added that Chile had a new government which had not even completed one hundred days.
Discussing bilateral co-operation, the Foreign Minister of Chile highlighted the importance of strengthening trade and economic relations, and observed the desirability of concluding a trade agreement. Prof. Peiris agreed that economic relations were a significant part of bilateral relations and explained the new opportunities that had arisen in Sri Lanka following the end of the conflict, and the economic progress the country had achieved in the past few years. The Ministers discussed modalities for collaboration between the Chambers of Commerce of the two countries.
From : http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_cat=article-details&page=article-details&code_title=105386
