Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, on Wednesday, invited Pope Francis to visit Sri Lanka. He made the invitation on behalf of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The Sri Lankan mission in Geneva, issuing a statement, quoted the Defence Secretary as having told the Pope that Sri Lanka was keen to explore further avenues to strengthen and consolidate relations between the Holy Sea and Sri Lanka.

Full text of the statement: His Holiness Pope Francis received Secretary of Defence  Gotabhaya Rajapaksa at an audience in the Vatican on Wednesday. Mr. Rajapaksa, who visited the Vatican as the Special Envoy of His Excellency the President, conveyed to Pope Francis an invitation from President Mahinda Rajapaksa to visit Sri Lanka in the near future.

During his visit, the Secretary also paid courtesy calls on dignitaries of the Vatican City State. Rajapaksa appreciated efforts by the Holy See to promote world peace, disarmament, interfaith dialogue and dialogue among civilisations. He said that as a nation that has been blessed with a multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural social fabric, and more importantly as a country that was coming out of a long period of conflict, Sri Lanka valued the strength that comes from the unity of the diverse communities in Sri Lanka. After almost thirty years of suffering, Sri Lanka had embarked upon a new era of development and reconciliation for all its people and looked upon the international community for encouragement and support.

Source: The Island (Sri Lanka)