President Ranil Wickremesinghe and the delegation has returned to the island this morning (21) after attending the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth II in the United Kingdom.

Ada Derana reporter said that they had reached the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in Katunayake at around 8.23 a.m. today onboard Emirates Airlines flight EK 650.  

Meanwhile the President’s Media Division yesterday issued a clarification regarding the false information being published in relation to the President’s visit to the United Kingdom.

It is observed that some parliamentarians and social media are trying to mislead the public by spreading false and incorrect information about the delegation representing Sri Lanka at the funeral ceremony of Queen Elizabeth II held at Westminster Abbey in Britain, it said.

Based on the official invitation received for this occasion, only President’s Private Secretary Sandra Perera and President’s Director on International Relations Dinouk Colombage joined the official delegation along with Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe. In addition, the President’s official doctor attended.

First Lady Senior Professor Maithree Wickramasinghe participated the tour at her personal expense and Presidential Advisor on Climate Change and Deputy Leader of the United National Party (UNP) Ruwan Wijewardene also joined the Sri Lankan Diaspora meeting held yesterday (19) while on a private visit to the United Kingdom, the PMD said.

Polish President Andrzej Duda and his wife Agatha Kornhauser-Duda, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo,  Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina,  Indian President Draupadi,  Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan,  US President Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Liz Truss, Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau,  Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern, French President Emmanuel Macron with his wife Brigitte Trogneux and many other heads of state were in attendance representing other foreign countries on this occasion.