Foreign Affairs State Minister visits Belgium, Luxembourg and EU institutions from 13-18 Dec.

State Minister of Foreign Affairs Vasantha Senanayake undertook an official visit to Belgium, Luxembourg and several European Union institutions from 13-18 December. 

He started the visit by attending the plenary sessions of the European Parliament in Strasbourg on 13 and 14 December where he met with European parliamentarians representing major political groups. 

In Strasbourg State Minister Senanayake attended a luncheon meeting with the Friends of Sri Lanka Group in the European Parliament. During the meeting, the Chair of the Group Geoffrey Van Orden, MEP, announced the group’s intention to visit Sri Lanka next year. State Minister Senanayake also met with the Chair of the South Asia Group Jean Lambert, MEP, who discussed the outcome of their recent visit to Sri Lanka. 

Senanayake visited the headquarters of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg on 14 December and met with Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni. They discussed several areas in which Sri Lanka was interested in further strengthening bilateral cooperation. 

With Sri Lanka having acceded to the European Convention on Cyber Crimes (Budapest Convention) in 2015, the discussion focused on obtaining technical assistance from the Council of Europe in relation to implementation.  

During the visit to Luxembourg on 15 December, Senanayake called on Minister of Social Security, Development Cooperation, Humanitarian Affairs and Sports of Luxembourg, Romain Schneider. The discussion centered on prospects for technical assistance for training in several sectors while also taking note of the generous assistance that Luxembourg had provided Sri Lanka over the years. 

The State Minister also met with MP Mars Di Bartolomeo, President of the Chamber of Deputies (Speaker of the Luxembourg Parliament), and discussed prospects for strengthening cooperation between the two parliaments and setting up friendship groups. 

The State Minister also participated in a well-attended luncheon meeting hosted by the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce where he had the opportunity to speak about the prospects for stronger connectivity between Luxembourg and Sri Lanka in the areas of trade and investment. 

It was noted that Luxembourg was a logistics hub in Europe and also a centre of financial services and that Sri Lanka could benefit immensely from stronger ties with it. 

The State Minister also said that a business delegation from Sri Lanka would visit Luxembourg early next year.  The visit to Luxembourg concluded with a dinner meeting with the Sri Lankan community hosted by the Honorary Consul of Sri Lanka in Luxembourg.  

During his visit to Belgium on 18 December, State Minister Senanayake held discussions with Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Pieter De Crem. The two ministers discussed prospects for further strengthening trade and increasing investment. De Crem visited Sri Lanka last year and renewed bilateral ties that were strengthened following the visit of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to Brussels last year. 

Senanayake also signed a Memorandum of Understanding on annual bilateral consultations between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of Belgium and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka. 

Senanayake attended a luncheon meeting hosted by the Belgium-Sri Lanka Parliamentary Friendship Group where the forthcoming visit of a delegation from the Friendship Group to Sri Lanka was discussed. The State Minister also called on Siegfried Bracke - President of the Chamber of Representatives of the Belgium Federal Parliament (Speaker of the Federal Parliament).

Later that same afternoon, Senanayake delivered the keynote address at a seminar titled ‘Sri Lanka – New Economic Opportunities and New Vision’ hosted by the European Institute of Asian Studies (EIAS) in Brussels. 

The State Minister referred extensively to the Vision 2025 policy document of the Sri Lankan Government and outlined prospects for potential European investors. Whilst noting that the EU was Sri Lanka’s single largest trading partner, he observed that the GSP+ facility granted in May 2017 provided a huge opportunity for Sri Lankan exporters to have duty free access to the European market. He also referred to the strong and vibrant cooperation between Sri Lanka and the European Union and the Government’s commitment to fulfil its international obligations. 

State Minister Senanayake also visited Antwerp, where he attended a business dinner hosted by the Honorary Consul of Sri Lanka in Antwerp. 

Senanayake was accompanied to the meetings by Sri Lankan Ambassador to Belgium Rodney Perera and embassy officials.