President to leave for BIMSTEC Summit

President Mahinda Rajapaksa will leave for Myanmar tomorrow to attend the third BIMSTEC Summit where leaders of seven Asian States will meet.

He will meet Indian Premier Manmohan Singh and Myanmar leaders on the sidelines of the sub-regional grouping, Presidential spokesman Mohan Samaranayake said.

The members of the BIMSTEC grouping (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) are Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Thailand, Bhutan, Nepal and Sri Lanka. External Affairs Minister Prof.G.L. Peiris left the country yesterday morning for Myanmar ahead of President Rajapaksa’s arrival for the two-day official visit.

Prof. Peiris will travel to Geneva on March 4 to lead the Sri Lanka delegation at the UN Human Rights Council’s 25th regular sessions.

The Minister will address the UN HRC member States on March 5 and present Sri Lanka’s case.

President Rajapaksa will return to Sri Lanka on March 4 and receive his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai on Wednesday.

MF