French President Emmanuel Macron to visit Sri Lanka on Friday

Colombo: French President Emmanuel Macron will visit Colombo on July 28 on his maiden trip for bilateral talks with his Sri Lankan counterpart Ranil Wickremesinghe, it was announced on Thursday.

Macron will be on his return home from a 5-day visit to the Pacific islands of Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu, President Wickremesinghe’s office said.

The official visit by Macron is the first such by a French president to Sri Lanka, officials said.

Macron is to meet with Wickremesinghe for bilateral talks Friday evening before leaving early Saturday morning.

Wickremesinghe had met Macron in Paris in June during the heads of state sessions of the Conference for a new global financial agreement.