COLOMBO: Sri Lanka will host the fifth Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit from Monday to Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry said on Sunday.
The Ministry said that the event will be held in hybrid mode and Foreign Ministers and senior officials of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Thailand will arrive in Sri Lanka, reports Xinhua news agency.
The Foreign Minister of Myanmar will, however, participate virtually, it added. On Wednesday, Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will chair the BIMSTEC Summit with leaders of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Thailand participating virtually, according to the Ministry.
It said the leaders and senior officials will discuss the progress and the future of BIMSTEC, and a BIMSTEC charter is expected to be adopted during the summit.
BIMSTEC groups seven nations of South Asia and Southeast Asia including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Meanwhile, India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday called on Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih in Addu City and discussed the special partnership between the two countries.
Jaishankar, who arrived there on Saturday, also conveyed the personal greetings and good wishes of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to President Solih.
