President Ranil Wickremesinghe says the long-standing friendship between Sri Lanka and the Philippines would be promoted by developing Asian regional cooperation.

The Head of State said this during his meeting with his Filipino counterpart, President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. in Manila this morning (Sep. 29).

The Philippines President accorded a rousing welcome to President Wickremesinghe upon his arrival at the Malacanang Palace.

Following their friendly conversation, the two leaders commenced their bilateral discussions.

During this discussion, greater emphasis was placed on further strengthening the longstanding bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and the Philippines through new approaches.

Senior Adviser to the President on National Security and Chief of Presidential Staff Sagala Ratnayake, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Mahinda Siriwardena, Sri Lankan Ambassador to the Philippines Shobini Gunasekera and the Sri Lankan delegation were present on this occasion.

President Wickremesinghe left for the Philippines yesterday after concluding his official state visit to Japan. He is slated to chair the meeting of the Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) there.

While in the Philippines, he will also meet and hold talks with the President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Masatsugu Asakawa.