Press Releases
Japan-Sri Lanka Foreign Ministers’ Telephone Talk
October 21, 2022
On October 21, commencing at 1:00 p.m. for approximately 10 minutes, Mr. HAYASHI Yoshimasa, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, held a telephone talk with Hon. M.U.M. Ali Sabry, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. The overview of the talk is as follows.
- At the outset, Minister Hayashi stated that he was pleased to speak to Minister Sabry again after the latest meeting held in August this year. Minister Hayashi also expressed his gratitude for the attendance of President Ranil Wickremesinghe to the state funeral for former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo.
- The two ministers exchanged their opinions on the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, including discussions at the 51th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council. Minister Hayashi stated that Japan’s perspective was encouraging Sri Lanka's own voluntary efforts, and pointed out that further improvement was needed on the human rights situation in Sri Lanka.
- The two ministers also exchanged views on Sri Lanka’s debt issues, and Minister Hayashi reaffirmed that it was important that debt restructuring should be carried out with the participation of all creditor countries in a transparent and comparable manner. The two ministers concurred on continuing to work closely together on this issue.