President Anura Kumara Dissanayake met with former South African President Thabo Mbeki on 26th of June at the Presidential Secretariat during Mbeki’s first official visit to Sri Lanka.
Mbeki expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to visit the country, noting that he had long followed Sri Lanka’s journey toward national unity and reconciliation with keen interest.
According to the President’s Media Division, Mbeki stated he was pleased to visit Sri Lanka at a time of significant political and social transformation.
He pointed out that despite the geographic distance, South Africa and Sri Lanka share common features as multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and multicultural societies facing similar challenges in achieving peace and reconciliation.
Mbeki offered to share South Africa’s experiences and lessons from its own reconciliation process and voiced confidence in President Dissanayake’s leadership in uniting Sri Lanka’s diverse communities and addressing its economic and social challenges.
In response, President Dissanayake reaffirmed his commitment to national harmony, reconciliation, and steering the country toward stability and inclusive progress.
Also attending the meeting were South African High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Sandile Schalk, CEO of the Thabo Mbeki Foundation Maxwell Boqwana, and COO Lukhanyo Neer. Sri Lanka was represented by Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs Ananda Wijepala and Senior Additional Secretary to the President Roshan Gamage.
