Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment Arun Hemachandra on Tuesday (04) highlighted the importance of consolidating economic and trade relations with the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Deputy Minister said so at the second session of the Joint Commission meeting between SL and UAE, in Colombo.
Deputy Minister Hemachandra pointed out that the two countries had, during the year, concluded two landmark agreements — the Agreement on the Promotion and Protection of Investments (IPPA) and the Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of the UAE–Sri Lanka Joint Business Council.
The UAE delegation was led by the Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates Saeed bin Mubarak Al Hajeri.
In his opening remarks, Deputy Minister Hemachandra observed that the establishment of the Sri Lanka–UAE Joint Commission marks a significant milestone in the partnership between the two countries. He emphasised that the mechanism serves as an effective platform for advancing comprehensive cooperation, both at the bilateral level and within international fora.
The first session had been held way back in 2014.
The discussions during the Second Session provided a valuable opportunity to review ongoing cooperation and explore new avenues in key areas, such as trade, investment, labour, and other fields of mutual interest.
The UAE State Minister welcomed the elevation of the bilateral relationship in the past few months and expressed keen interest in focusing on enhanced trade and tourism cooperation, including infrastructure development targeting high-end tourism from the UAE. He conveyed willingness to further step up cooperation in energy, investments, financial services and textiles, and noted the importance of economic cooperation diversification.
At the conclusion of the deliberations, the Co-Chairs-Deputy Minister Hemachandra and State Minister Al Hajeri signed the Agreed Minutes of the Second Session. The discussions encompassed a wide range of areas of cooperation, including political, economic, financial, transport, sports, health, customs, energy, labour, defence, science and technology, education, culture, agriculture, food, and postal sectors.
The Third Session of the Sri Lanka–UAE Joint Commission is scheduled to be held in Abu Dhabi.