Sri Lanka's Sirisena picks India for his first foreign visit

Sri Lanka's new President Maithripala Sirisena will embark on a four-day official visit to India from February 15 in his first foreign trip, aimed at repairing ties with New Delhi which soured under the previous regime.

President Sirisena will leave on February 15 and will remain in India until February 18, his office said in a statement on Thursday.

The 63-year-old leader will also travel to Buddhist pilgrimage site Bodh Gaya and Hindu temple in Tirupathi before returning to Sri Lanka, the statement said.

Sirisena, who dethroned Mahinda Rajapaksa after a bitter presidential poll on January 9, has indicated that he wants to have closer relations with India.

President Sirisena will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discuss bilateral issues. He will also meet with President Pranab Mukherjee and other party leaders.

Prime Minister Modi had on Wednesday tweeted that he was looking forward to the visit of President Sirisena to India.

In his address on the Sri Lanka's 67th anniversary of independence, Sirisena said on Thursday that his government would pursue a foreign policy of neutrality to win over the international community to develop the island.

Rajapaksa's administration had a record of soured ties with India, which had supported United States-backed United Nations Human Rights Council resolutions against Sri Lanka.

Sirisena had received overwhelming support from the Tamil and Muslim minorities, who accused Rajapaksa of practising politics of dynasty and marginalising them.

Image: Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena will visit India on February 15