Mr President
Mr Secretary-General
Your Majesties
Your Excellencies
Distinguished Delegates
Ladies and Gentlemen
At the outset, I thank H.E. Volkan Bozkir, President of the General Assembly for convening the Special Session in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as proposed by the Non Aligned Movement and Azerbaijan, Chair of the NAM.
State Minister for Regional Co-operation Tharaka Balasuriya delivering the keynote address at the virtual conference; ‘Promoting Sri Lanka’s Interests in the Maritime Domain: Strengthening Cooperation with the European Union’ reiterated that Sri Lanka’s maritime domain is a vital component that can unleash Sri Lanka’s growth potential and achieve the priority areas outlined in President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s manifesto ‘Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour’.
Sri Lanka condemns the assassination of Dr. Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, and any form of acts of terrorism against humanity. Sri Lanka calls for the stability and security of the Middle East and the Persian Gulf region and believes strongly in dialogue and engagement as the most successful means for finding a solution to problems.
Foreign Ministry
Colombo
02 December 2020
The London-based think-tank Legatum Institute launched the 14th Legatum Prosperity Index on 17 November 2020. One of the main highlights of this year’s index was the improvement in Sri Lanka’s education and healthcare sectors over the past decade. According to the Index, these improvements were key to increase in prosperity within Sri Lanka.
Excellencies,
Hon.Chairman,
Distinguished delegates,
Ayubowan.
It is my pleasure to be invited to address this august gathering, representing my country.
Let me commence my remarks by congratulating His Excellency Luhut B. Panjaitan, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs of Indonesia, UNDP and the AIS Secretariat for organizing this important event.
Eminent international legal luminaries, Managing Director and Head of Projects for Morocco and Sudan at the Max Planck Foundation Prof. Rüdiger Wolfrum and member of the United Nations International Law Commission Sir Michael Wood were among the speakers at a webinar organized by the Foreign Ministry on 20 November 2020, as part of its responsibilities as the lead country for the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Working Group on Maritime Safety and security on the theme “The Nexus between Marine Scientific Research (MSR) and Maritime Safety and Security (MSS)”.
