Ambassadors of Sri Lanka, UK present credentials to President Solih

The new Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Maldives and the first resident Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Maldives presented their letters of credence to President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on Wednesday.

Sri Lankan Ambassador Kohono Walawe and UK Ambassador Carol Rohsla presented their credentials at separate ceremonies held at the President's Office.

Ambassador Walawe expressed his keenness to continue the work of his predecessors to further enhance the longstanding ties between Maldives and Sri Lanka which are rooted in cultural similarities, geographic proximity, and shared history.

The president congratulated the ambassador and returned the warm sentiments, assuring that his government was committed to do all it can to improve cooperation on bilateral and multilateral issues of common interest, including consular cooperation, environmental preservation, maritime collaboration, tourism and trade.

Ambassador Rohsla asserted her commitment to building on bilateral relations, highlighting in particular the areas of democratic consolidation, human rights and good governance in Maldives. She also touched upon the large scope for expanding mutual cooperation on international issues such as environmental preservation, tourism and trade among other areas.

President Solih reciprocated her remarks and congratulated her on the appointment, expressing confidence that the new ambassador would excel in her duties.

This marks the first appointment of a resident ambassador of the UK to Maldives, while previous ambassadors had been non-resident and based in Colombo, where their mandates were fulfilled by the UK High Commissioner to Sri Lanka.

The President's Office highlighted that the establishment of a British Embassy in Maldives represented a significant upgrade in relations between the two countries which would facilitate greater levels of diplomatic engagement.

The Office further noted that Maldives was ahead of schedule in the process of rejoining the Commonwealth, and stated that President Solih's administration was looking forward to the Embassy changing to a High Commission in the near future.