$50 million defence credit line facility for SL; Pakistan PM Imran Khan

Colombo (News 1st); Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan concluded his two-day official visit to Sri Lanka on Wednesday (24) following meetings with the President, Prime Minister and others.

Prime Minister Imran Khan was accompanied by a high-level delegation, comprising Federal Ministers and senior Government officials. This was the first visit by the Prime Minister of Pakistan to Sri Lanka since the formation of the new governments in both countries. During the visit, Prime Minister Imran Khan held delegation-level meetings with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka. Both sides comprehensively reviewed the multifaceted bilateral relationship in diverse fields of cooperation. Pakistan announced 100 scholarships in the field of medicines (MBBS and BDS) as part of the Pakistan-Sri Lanka Higher Education Cooperation Programme (PSLHECP). During the visit, the following MoUs between Pakistan and Sri Lanka were signed: i. Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on Cooperation in Tourism ii. Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Cooperation between the Board of Investment of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and the Board of Investment of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan iii. Memorandum of Understanding between Industrial Technology Institute (ITI), the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences, University of Karachi Islamic Republic of Pakistan iv. Intent of Cooperation between Industrial Technology Institute of Sri Lanka and COMSATS University Islamabad v. Memorandum of Understanding between University of Colombo, Sri Lanka and Lahore School of Economics, Pakistan Both sides expressed satisfaction at the existing bilateral cooperation in the field of defence and noted that the elevation of staff-level talks to Defence Dialogue has further provided an opportunity to expand security sector relations. Prime Minister Imran Khan announced a new $50 million defence credit line facility. The two sides stressed the need for stronger partnership for supporting and coordinating with each other in dealing with matters related to security, terrorism, organized crime and drug and narcotic trafficking as well as intelligence-sharing. Prime Minister Imran Khan in his efforts to strengthen sports diplomacy participated at an interactive session with the sports community of Sri Lanka on 24 February 2021. At this event, Sri Lanka’s Minister of Sports and Youth Namal Rajapaksa, in the presence of the Parliament Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardane, announced the commissioning of the “Imran Khan High Performance Sports Centre” in Colombo. The Pakistan side announced its decision to provide PKR 52 million for promotion of sports in Sri Lanka, including through training and equipment. In the context of regional connectivity, Prime Minister Imran Khan highlighted the opportunities presented by China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship project of BRI, for regional economic growth and prosperity. At the Pakistan Sri Lanka Trade and Investment Conference 2021, the Pakistan Prime Minister invited Sri Lankan businesses to join CPEC. The Prime Minister of Pakistan extended an invitation to the President and the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka to visit Pakistan at their earliest convenience.