The Vietnamese President Troung Tan Sang left last evening after completing a successful three-day official visit to Sri Lanka.

President Sang and First Lady Mai Thi Hanh arrived here on 13th October on an invitation extended by President Mahinda Rajapaksa marking the first head of state of Viet Nam to visit Sri Lanka.

The Vietnamese President’s 145 - member delegation included Deputy Prime Minister, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Finance Minister, Vuong Dinh Hue, deputy ministers, senior officials and nearly 60 prominent business leaders.

Upon arrival, President Truong Tan Sang and the First Lady Madam Mai Thi Hanh were received by President Rajapaksa and First Lady, Madam Shiranthi Rajapaksa at the Bandaranaike International Airport.

Sri Lanka and Viet Nam established formal diplomatic relations in 1970 which were based on long standing relations between the two countries including Sri Lanka’s support of Vietnam during its turbulent years of independence and unification. Since the establishment of Sri Lanka’s Embassy in Hanoi in 2003, under the guidance of then Foreign Minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, relations between the two nations have been thriving. These relations were further cemented by the State Visit of President Rajapaksa to Viet Nam in October 2009. Viet Nam has been a staunch supporter in Sri Lanka’s fight against terrorism and defended Sri Lanka’s interests in multilateral fora including the UN Security Council and the UN Human Rights Council.

President of Vietnam began his official schedule on 14th October morning by offering floral tributes to the Ranaviru Monument at the Parliamentary grounds in Sri Jayawardenapura, Kotte.

Later that morning, President Mahinda Rajapaksa had in depth discussions with President of Vietnam, Truong Tan Sang on bilateral relations and matters of mutual interest. President Rajapaksa was joined in the discussions by Minister of External Affairs, Hon. Prof G.L. Peiris, Senior Minister of International Monetary Cooperation, Hon. Dr. Sarath Amunugama, Minister of Petroleum Industries, Hon. Susil Premajayantha, Minister of Fisheries & Aquatic Resource Development, Hon. Dr. Rajitha Senaratne, Minister of Industry & Commerce, Hon. Rishard Bathiyudeen, Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, Minister of Culture & the Arts, Hon. T.B. Ekanayake, Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Hon. Nandimithra Ekanayake, Hon. Sajin de Vass Gunawardena, Secretary to the President, Mr. Lalith Weeratunga, Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Mr Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Secretary, Ministry of Finance & Economic Development, Dr. P.B. Jayasundera, Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, Mr K. Amunugama, Chief of Staff to the President, Mr Gamini Senarath, while the Vietnamese President was accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Minister of Finance, Vuong Dinh Hue, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Doan Xuan Hung, Deputy Minister of National Defence, Nguyen Chi Vinh, Deputy Minister of Public Security, Le Quy Vuong, Deputy Minister of Industry & Trade, Le Duong Quang, Deputy Minister of Planning & Investment, Nguyen Van Trung, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports & Tourism, Huynh Vinh Ai, Deputy Minister of Agriculture & Rural Development, Bui Ba Bong, Deputy Minister of Science & Technology, Nguyen Van Lang and the Vietnamese Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Ton Sinh Thanh,

The discussions were conducted in an extremely warm, cordial and friendly atmosphere reflecting mutual esteem and respect as well as the prevailing favorable course of Sri Lanka - Vietnam relations at present. At the outset, the two Presidents exchanged greetings and noted action taken by both sides in recent years to enhance bilateral relations at all levels. President Rajapaksa congratulated President Truong Tan Sang on the rapid socio - economic progress made by Vietnam and her people under his steadfast leadership. While reciprocating the sentiments, Vietnamese President extended his appreciation to President Rajapaksa for the warm welcome and generous hospitality afforded to the Vietnamese delegation and lauded President Rajapaksa’s vision in ushering his country a new era of peace, stability and economic prosperity. The two Presidents noted with satisfaction that bilateral relations in the political, economic, cultural and other fields have developed and diversified in recent years and reiterated their commitment to the furtherance of such mutually beneficial ties in the years to come.

President Rajapaksa briefed his Vietnamese counterpart on the action taken by the Government to expedite reconstruction of areas affected by the conflict and development of infrastructure, livelihood and socio - economic standards of the people in the North and East of the country. Elaborating further, he emphasized the Government’s long term commitment towards ushering lasting peace and ethnic harmony among all ethnic communities in the country through a political framework acceptable to all parties. He further opined that the international community could take advantage of the post - war opportunities in the investment, tourism, infrastructure, hospitality and other potential sectors and become stakeholders in Sri Lanka’s development process. While appreciating the Vietnam’s unwavering support for Sri Lanka’s fight against terrorism as well as its role in defending Sri Lanka’s interest at multilateral fora in recent years, President Rajapaksa recalled the support extended by Sri Lanka to Vietnam during its campaign for unification and independence.

Vietnamese President on his part reiterated Vietnam’s firm resolve to support Sri Lanka in pursuit of its economic goals and stability. He also praised President Rajapaksa for the decisive victory against terrorism and said Sri Lankans could be proud of their achievements in all sphere of activity over the last 2 years. It was also noted that peoples of Viet Nam and Sri Lanka have so much in common with shared perceptions and interests from a historical and contemporary perspective as members of the Asian community in particular and that of the United Nations at large.

Both Presidents agreed that Sri Lanka and Vietnam could continue to play a proactive and constructive role in the regional and multilateral fora toward safeguarding their shared values and common objectives as emerging economies in Asia.

At the conclusion of discussions, a total of 8 Memoranda of Understanding ( MoUs ) were signed aimed at promoting cooperation in a variety of sectors such as political, defence, finance, industry & trade, investment, education, petroleum etc. The two sides expressed hope that the signing of such mutually beneficial instruments would help further deepen the understanding and collaboration between the two countries in multifaceted fields of opportunities. It was noted that the commitments made by Vietnamese side in regard to providing expertise and technical knowhow in the petroleum sector would benefit Sri Lanka in maximizing its efforts toward the exploitation of commercial interests.

Vietnamese President, Truong Tan Sang declared open the Vietnam – Sri Lanka Business Forum that same afternoon jointly organised by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce and the National Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with the Ministry of External Affairs of Sri Lanka and the Vietnamese Embassy in Colombo.

The Minister of External Affairs, Prof. G.L Peiris called on the Vietnamese President in the afternoon. Later in the evening, President Rajapaksa hosted his Vietnamese counterpart to a State Banquet.

As a commitment made to President Rajapaksa during his state visit in 2009, the Vietnamese Government re-established its Embassy in Sri Lanka in early 2011. President Truong Tan Sang ceremonially opened the Embassy this morning ( 15th October ) along with Prime Minister, Hon D.M Jayaratne who was the chief guest for the event.

The Vietnamese leader also took off time from his busy schedule to visit the Gems & Jewellery Authority this morning prior to his departure from Sri Lanka in the afternoon.

Meanwhile, the Vietnamese First Lady, Madam Mai Thi Hanh on 14th October paid a courtesy call on the Chief Prelate of the Malwatta Chapter, Most Venerable Thibbotuwawe Sri Sumangala Maha Nayake Thero and later paid respects to the Temple of the Tooth Relic in Kandy. In the afternoon First Lady, Madam Mai Thi Hanh visited the Carlton Pre School Network Headquarters in Colombo on the invitation of First Lady, Madam Shiranthi Rajapaksa followed by a tour of the National Crafts Council in Battaramulla.

The State Visit of the President of Vietnam marked a new chapter in Sri Lanka – Vietnam bilateral relations and would pave the way for renewed friendship and further consolidation of mutually beneficial ties between the two countries.