The Prime Minister of Thailand General Prayut Chan-o-cha recalling the strong bilateral ties between the two countries reassured the support of Thailand for Sri Lanka’s development efforts. He made these remarks when Ambassador Samantha K. Jayasuriya, Sri Lanka’s envoy to the Kingdom paid a courtesy call on him at the Government House in Bangkok on 03 February 2020.
During the meeting, Ambassador Jayasuriya conveyed the greetings of President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and noted that the Thailand and Sri Lanka relations deeply entrenched in the Theravada Buddhist traditions spans over several centuries and assured her fullest cooperation and proactive engagement in further consolidating the socio-cultural relations. She appreciated Thailand's support to Sri Lanka, both bilaterally and in multilateral fora and requested support in Sri Lanka becoming a Sectoral Dialogue Partner (SDP) in ASEAN. Ambassador Jayasuriya also highlighted the steps Sri Lanka has taken towards this end, by way of projects in maritime security, capacity building support to needy countries in the region.
General Prayut, while recalling his fruitful visit to Sri Lanka in 2018, said that Thailand stands ready to assist Sri Lanka in her development, and would extend support, particularly in agriculture, technical cooperation and tourism. He reiterated the importance of finalizing the proposed Free Trade Agreement between the two countries, enabling the expansion of trade and investment between Thailand and Sri Lanka. The Prime Minister also noted the exchanges of sacred relics which help strengthen the cultural and religious ties between the two countries.
The meeting was held in a cordial manner with the presence of senior officials from the PM’s Office including the Deputy Secretary-General of the PM’s Office Bansarn Bunnag and the senior officials of the Thai Foreign Ministry, while the Ambassador was accompanied by Head of Chancery Poornima Gunasekera, First Secretary (Commerce) Anil Sirimanna and Second Secretary Saritha Ranatunga.
