India will remain a strong partner in Sri Lanka's journey ahead: Envoy Mahishini Colonne

New Delhi, Sep 26 (PTI) The ties between India and Sri Lanka have reached a point of "unprecedented excellence" since President Anura Kumara Dissanayake's visit to India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Sri Lanka, the island nation's envoy Mahishini Colonne said on Friday.

Interacting with PTI Videos on the sidelines of an event here, she said Sri Lanka is on the "path of recovery", the economy has been stabilised, and necessary structural reforms have been brought in to sustain it.

Colonne, Sri Lanka's high commissioner in New Delhi, asserted that India will remain a "strong partner" in her country's forward journey.

Underlining the historic cultural and economic ties between the two countries, the envoy said that it has been over two decades since India and Sri Lanka signed a free trade agreement in 1998, and that it was time to upgrade the pact.

Earlier in the day, Sri Lanka's Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Wasantha Samarasinghe, who is currently visiting India, secretary in the ministry, K A Vimalenthirarajah, and Colonne addressed a session hosted by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) here.

In separate addresses, they urged more Indian companies to invest in Sri Lanka, insisting that vast opportunities exist in their country.

Vimalenthirarajah also said Sri Lanka International Expo will be held in June 2026 in Colombo.

Colonne, in her address, recalled Prime Minister Modi's words, who had described India and Sri Lanka as "civilisational twins". The two countries share a relationship that is "very, very unique", she said.

The ties "between our peoples are anchored in history, culture, geography and trade", and goes back millennia, the envoy said. "We see India not just as our closest neighbour, but also our most natural business partner." On the sidelines, she further shared the importance of the recent high-level visits from both sides and the state of India-Sri Lanka ties.

"The current state of India-Sri Lanka relationship, I would describe as a being in a position of unprecedented excellence. Our president visited India in December last year, which was the first overseas visit since being elected as president, and just four months later, we had Prime Minister Modi ji visit Sri Lanka," she told PTI.

Colonne said this is the first time where two back-to-back visits at such high levels took place. "We are really hopeful, and the opportunities to explore partnerships is at an optimal level, at this particular moment in time," she said.

And, it is now up to business persons, and people in every sector, and other people to explore opportunities for further strengthening the relations, the envoy said.

Colonne further said the opportunities to explore partnerships are at an "optimal level".

The FTA signed between Sri Lanka and India in 1998 was the first free trade agreement for both countries, she said. "I think, trade is one of the areas where, we are doing very well. And, we need to improve further." "And, now it's been over two decades since we signed the FTA, and it is time, I think to upgrade the trade agreement. So, to improve the service sector. I think, this is the time to seize to do that," the envoy added.

During her interaction with PTI, the high commissioner also shared insights about the island nation's plan ahead as it recovers the shocks of an unprecedented economic crisis.

"Well, we are on the path of recovery, IMF has confirmed that and our economic growth forecast at 4-5 per cent. So, we have stabilised our economy, and we are bringing in the necessary structural reforms to sustain that development, growth and stability. Of course, we are still in a state of recovery, and we are working on what is necessary to make it sustainable," she said.

The envoy said India was not just the first responder during the recent economic crisis, it has always been the first responder whenever Sri Lanka was in crisis, including during the tsunami.

"...they actually helped us through our negotiations with the IMF, in debt restructuring, and so on. So, India definitely, will remain a strong partner, and we are confident about it," Colonne said.

Sri Lanka was hit by a catastrophic financial crisis in 2022, the worst since its independence from Britain in 1948, due to a severe paucity of foreign exchange reserves.

On plans to boost cultural bilateral ties, she said, opportunities to partner up "are limitless when it comes to culture and tourism".

"We now have the Ramayana trail, and so on and so forth. So, all these ideas are here, which we are just lying there to be developed further, opportunities to seize and grab. We have the largest number of tourists visiting from India, and we invite more tourists to come, and we also want more investors to come actually to invest in tourism. the envoy said.

The largest number of tourists from India was in 2018, she said. "We haven't matched that yet, but we are moving towards that target." PTI KND SKY SKY