President Ranil returns to island after China visit

President Ranil Wickremesinghe has returned to the island after concluding his four-day visit to China.

Accompanied by a high-level delegation, the Sri Lankan leader left for Beijing on October 16 to attend the 3rd Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation which kicked off under the auspices of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The event witnessed the participation of heads of state from approximately 20 nations and representatives from over 130 countries. During the conference, President Xi unveiled a set of comprehensive policies, aligned with the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), reflecting its commitment to fostering global partnerships.

On the sidelines of the Belt and Road Forum, the Sri Lankan leader called on Chinese President Xi, Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Pakistani Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar and Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang.

The Chinese leader has promised to provide assistance for Sri Lanka without any political motives, to buy more of the island’s exports and to increase investments. President Xi also assured that China would provide friendly, practical and timely support for Sri Lanka’s debt optimization program.

President Wickremesinghe also signed an agreement with Huawei formalizing the Chinese tech giant’s support for the digitization of Sri Lankan schools.

He also attended the high-level conference “Green Silk Road for Harmony with Nature” held at the China International Conference Hall, in conjunction with the 3rd “Belt and Road Initiative” International forum.

The Sri Lankan leader also engaged in high-level discussions with representatives from several major Chinese corporations, including China Communications Construction Corporation, Sinopec Company and BYD Company.