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COLOMBO: The speaker of the Saudi Shoura Council, Dr. Abdullah Al-Asheikh, arrived in Sri Lanka on Sunday for an official visit to the country. Upon his arrival in the capital Colombo, Al-Asheikh was greeted by the speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament, Karu Jayasuriya, who had made the invitation, along with the Saudi ambassador to Sri Lanka, Abdul Nasser Al-Harthy, and a number of officials.
Al-Asheikh hailed Saudi-Sri Lankan bilateral relations which he said were growing stronger based on cooperation and friendship under the two countries’ leaderships.
He pointed out that the Kingdom and Sri Lanka shared a similar goal in combating terrorism which was not related to religion or race.
In the parliamentary field, Al-Asheikh said that during the visit he aimed to discuss a number of issues of common interest between the Shoura Council and the Sri Lankan Parliament.
Speaking to Arab News, Al-Harthy said that the purpose of the trip was to strengthen parliamentary and bilateral relations in all sectors.
As part of his visit, Al-Asheikh will address the Sri Lankan Parliament where he will convey the greetings of the Saudi leadership, while the Kingdom’s delegation will hold talks with Jayasuriya and other members, and is also expected to meet President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and leader of the opposition, Mahinda Rajapaksa.