Sri Lanka offers Bangladesh ‘greater’ use of Colombo Port
a year ago
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Sri Lanka has offered greater use of the Colombo Port by Bangladesh for the country’s export and import trade, according to the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry.
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa made the offer on Wednesday (30 March) when meeting with Bangladesh Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen in Colombo. Momen is currently in Sri Lanka for the 18th day of the Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Co-operation (BIMSTEC) ministerial meeting.
“Sri Lankan President offered greater use of the Colombo Port by Bangladesh for transportation of Bangladeshi trade goods,” Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
President Rajapaksa thanked Bangladesh for continued support in various multilateral fora and both sides agreed to closely work together in the future. The two sides also discussed the possible new areas for co-operation, including food security, ICT, healthcare, and blue economy.
Both sides also agreed to expedite and complete the negotiations and approval process of pending bilateral instruments for greater benefits of the two peoples, according to the ministry.
In this regard, they welcomed the progress made for an early conclusion of the bilateral Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) for enhancing and facilitating trade between the two South Asian countries.
Momen also called for enhanced trade and tourism by commercial shipping and cruise shipping lines between Chattogram, Bangladesh’s premier seaport, and the Colombo Port, said the Foreign Ministry.
On Wednesday, Rajapaksa also chaired the virtual fifth BIMSTEC Summit, while urging enhanced co-operation among the BIMSTEC member countries of India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand.
(Xinhua)