Indo-Lanka relations gained momentum in 2015 after Maithripala Sirisena’s stunning upset win over strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa in Sri Lanka’s polls as the strain in ties gave way to bonhomie with exchange of top-level visits and signing of a nuclear pact.
- Four bilateral agreements were signed during Sirisena’s visit with the most significant being a civil nuclear cooperation pact which Prime Minister Narendra Modi described as “another demonstration of our mutual trust”.
Indo-Lanka Ties 2015:
- Modi become the first Indian Prime Minister to visit the country after Rajiv Gandhi in 1987.
- Modi became the first Indian Prime Minister and the third Indian leader to visit the Tamil-dominated former war-zone, after Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru.
- Modi also raised contentious issues with the government, including the release of Tamil political prisoners and returning the civilian lands used for military purposes.
- Modi inaugurated the reconstructed Northern Province railway line as part of India’s promise on infrastructure development in the war-ravaged north.
- Wickremesinghe also chose India to be his first overseas destination after being elected to office.
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