President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Madam Shiranthi Rajapaksa arrived at Turkey’s Esenboga Airport at Ankara last evening (Dec 01) on an official visit at the invitation of the President of Turkey.

The Sri Lankan President was met on arrival by a Turkish Minister of State, the Governor of Ankara, the Garrison Commander, the Mayor of Ankara, the Ambassador of Turkey accredited to Sri Lanka and was accorded a Guard of Honour at the airport.

President Rajapaksa will be welcomed this morning (Dec 2) by Mr. Abdullah Gul, the President of Turkey at the Presidential Palace where he will be accorded a Guard of Honour and a 21-gun salute.

A private discussion between the two Presidents will be followed by bi-lateral talks between the delegations of Sri Lanka and Turkey, after which two important agreements will be signed between the two countries. One is for a Treaty of Extradition and the other is for the establishment of air services between the two countries.

President Rajapaksa will later visit the Turkish Grand National Assembly, where he will be received by the Speaker Mr. Koksal Toptan, and hosted to a luncheon.

The busy schedule for the Sri Lankan President today will include a visit to Anıtkabir, the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the leader of Turkish War of Independence and the founder and first president of the Republic of Turkey, where he will lay a wreath in tribute to the founder of modern Turkey.

President Rajapaksa will also visit the Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation of Turkey where he will be briefed on Turkey’s industrial development.

He will later meet the Turkish Prime Minister Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, which will be followed by a banquet hosted by President Abdullah Gul and Mrs. Gul at the Presidential Palace to the President of Sri Lanka, Madam Rajapaksa and the Sri Lankan delegation.

A special programme has been arranged for Madam Shiranthi Rajapaksa today, which will include a visit to the Handicraft Section of the “Olgunlasma” Institute and a special show if “Ebru Art”. She will also visit the Museum of the Anatolian Civilization, and a special collection dedicated to the history of Transport, Industry and Communications at Cengelhan which is famed for its collection of full size models and miniatures of boats and vehicles.

There have been strong historical links between Sri Lanka and Turkey, when it was part of the Ottoman Empire, especially due to Sri Lanka’s location on the Silk Route used for trade between Europe, the Arab countries and the Orient. There were relations between Ceylon and Turkey during British colonial times with a Turkish consulate located in Galle which was a major trade and business centre. Turkey is also a larger importer of tea from Sri Lanka, which imports lentils from that country. Turkey was very early in coming to the assistance of Sri Lanka after the tsunami of December 2004.

The Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Ergodan visited Sri Lanka in February 2005 to personally convey the condolences to the tsunami affected people in Sri Lanka, and assure the country of assistance. It was quick to provide emergency relief supplies, followed by projects of reconstruction, including housing schemes and the construction of an entire township for tsunami victims in Matara.

The present visit of President Rajapaksa to Turkey is expected to lead to stronger bi-lateral ties and better trade relations, as well as greater cooperation in combating terrorism, between Sri Lanka and Turkey. The President is accompanied by a strong delegation of business persons from the private sector that will discuss the possibilities of Turkish investment in Sri Lanka and the enhancement of trade and economic ties between the two countries.