The Foreign Ministers of Sri Lanka and Thailand had extensive discussions on issues connected with people smuggling, and their impact on the wellbeing of both countries. Professor G.L. Peiris, Minister of External Affairs, thanked his Thai counterpart, Kasit Piromya, for the understanding and support of the Royal Thai Government in this regard.
The bilateral discussion took place on the sidelines of the Third Asia Middle East Dialogue Ministerial Meeting held this week in Bangkok.
Prof. Peiris, in his keynote address to the Conference, at which the Foreign Ministers of Thailand, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Brunei-Darussalam were co-panelists with the Minister of External Affairs of Sri Lanka, underlined the need for concerted action among States at the regional level to deal effectively with issues arising typically in post-conflict situations.
Among these issues, he pointed out, are the security of sea lanes, the continuing exchange of intelligence as an integral part of the counter-terrorist strategy and vigorous measures to combat people smuggling.