Sri Lanka will be hosting the next International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP) from September 18-21, with the opening ceremony scheduled to take place Sept. 19, 2014.

The preparations were finalized when the secretary-general of the ICAPP Standing Committee Mr.
Chung Eui-yong met President Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees this afternoon, the Presidential Spokesman said in a release.

As hosts, Sri Lanka was requested to select the main theme of the conference, which was decided to be “Building an Asian Community.”

The invitation to host this year’s ICAPP was made in July of last year. Approximately 100 different political parties from across Asia are expected to attend the high-level conference.

“Sri Lanka is very strategically located for such a meeting,” Mr. Eui-yong said during the meeting in July.

President Rajapaksa also addressed a special conference of ICAPP in Shaanxi Province during his state visit to China in May 2013, where focus was placed on the need to strengthen the relationships between and among Asian nations.

Ambassador of Korea in Sri Lanka, Jongmoon Choi accompanied Mr. Eui-yong.

Minister of Health and the General Secretary of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP)Maithreepala Sirisena, Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga and Secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs Kshenuka Seneviratne were also present.