Prime Minister of Thailand Prayut Chan-o-cha has arrived in Sri Lanka on a two-day official visit.
The Thai Prime Minister and his group of 40 delegates including his wife arrived in Sri Lanka at 2.45 pm on a special aircraft belonging to the Thai Army.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Ministers Sarath Fonseka, Vajira Abeywardana, Faizer Mustapha and many others had received the group of delegates at the Bandaranaike International Airport, in midst of army salutations and gun salutes.
The group is scheduled to leave to Thailand the next day (13).
President Maithripala Sirisena will be receiving the Thai Prime Minister at the Presidential Secretariat.
The reason for this visit is an official invitation from the Sri Lankan government for further strengthening the bilateral relations between Thailand and Sri Lanka to the level of Strategic Economic Partnership and to enhance the relations between the two countries in key areas such as trade and investment, technical cooperation, religious and cultural ties and tourism as well as to exchange views on regional issues, particularly maritime connectivity.
Following Memorandums of Understandings will be signed between the two countries on the visit:
1. Treaty between the Kingdom of Thailand and the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka on the Transfer of Offenders and on Co-operation in the Enforcement of Penal Sentences
2. Memorandum of Understanding on Strategic Economic Partnership between the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
3. Memorandum of Understanding between Ministry of Social Welfare and Primary Industries and Kasetsart University on Technological Collaboration Related to Value Addition of Primary Products
4. Joint Action Programme for Cooperation on Sustainable Community Development Model based on the Application on Sufficiency Economy Philosophy in the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
In addition, the Prime Minister of Thailand will exchange views with representatives of the Thai private sector who have businesses or keen interest in investing in Sri Lanka.
He will also meet with Opposition Leader Rajavarothayam Sampanthan and visit Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic in Kandy under the auspices of the Most Venerable Mahanayake Theros of the Malwatta and Asgiriya Chapters of the Siam Sect.
Thai PM is scheduled to visit the Royal Botanic Garden in Peradeniya and plant a sapling to mark his first official visit to Sri Lanka.
