Sri Lanka appreciates Russia’s support for COVID-19 response

Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena in a telephone conversation with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov on Monday expressed his deep appreciation for the support extended by Russia towards Sri Lanka in addressing the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.   

 In this regard, Foreign Minister Gunawardena welcomed Russia’s assistance in accessing the Sputnik V vaccine to support Sri Lanka’s nationwide inoculation programme, as well as ongoing cooperation between the relevant institutes of epidemiology and biotechnology in producing the vaccine, according to a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry.

The Foreign Minister also reiterated Sri Lanka’s appreciation to Russia for the support extended to Sri Lanka in multilateral fora, including in the Human Rights Council.

 Bilateral consultations being scheduled within the framework of the two Foreign Ministries, as well as the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation, were among other issues discussed.