In a landmark address to the Japanese Parliament, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe urged Japan to support Sri Lanka organize an aid conference on behalf of the country.

Wickremesinghe pointed out that the country was moving towards change and invited the Japanese to invest in Sri Lanka.

The Prime Minister expressed desire to strengthen economic partnership with Japan, based on scientific and technological advancements.

Meanwhile, he also asked Japan to support Sri Lanka in its quest to achieve long lasting reconciliation.

Addressing the Japanese Parliament is a rare honour bestowed on a foreign leader. Only US President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have been granted this opportunity before.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who left for Japan on a five-day official visit, will meet Japan PM Shinzo Abe on Tuesday, Japan's Jiji Press said.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga revealed this to the media on Friday.

Abe and Wickremesinghe are expected to discuss maritime cooperation.

Suga told the press conference that Sri Lanka is very important for peace and safety in the Indian Ocean.

Japan wants to deepen its relationship and partnership with the South Asian country, he stressed.

Minister of Science, Technology and Research Susil Premajayantha, who was also the former UPFA General Secretary, is expected join Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in his official visit to Japan later this week.

Wickremesinghe will leave the island on October 3 for a five day visit. Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake and Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera will also accompany the Prime Minister.

The inclusion of Premajayantha is interesting in the backdrop of his staunch support to former President Mahinda Rajapaksa during the August 17 General Election.

The Sri Lankan delegation is expected to meet Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and other government officials in Japan.

Sri Lanka needs to carry out a broad plan to minimize sexual tension in society, expand sex education and develop the society through cultural and spiritual development, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said.

The Prime Minister pointed out that sexual assault against children has become a menace and called on all Sri Lankans to unite with the government to carryout initiatives to reduce the sexual tension prevalent in the society.

In addition, steps should be taken to expand sex education and teach the people proper information, Wickremesinghe said. Furthermore, society must be developed both spiritually and culturally, he pointed out.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that there was no need to postpone the Local Government Election and it will be held in March 2016 as planned.

Speaking this morning at the National Management Conference, he also said that the government was facing the challenge of establishing a fully democratic society.

Wickremesinghe argued that reconciliation could not be established by limiting to judicial and non-judicial mechanisms. It must be established in the background of wider democracy, he added.

The two main political parties have decided to work together to face the challenges, he added. Constitutional reform and other measures will be introduced in the next two years, the Prime Minister said.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is to visit Japan in early October, The Japan Times reported today.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that the investigations on alleged war crimes should be carried out under a domestic system and not through a mechanism designed by an outside person or entity.

Giving a special statement in Parliament, he said that the mechanism should cover a broad scope, encompassing all parties.

Wickremesinghe gave a basic outline of the events after 2009 which led to the intervention of the UNHRC. However, the international community has developed a favorable opinion following the January 8 Presidential Election, he pointed out.

Judicial and administrative reform are also vital for true reconciliation, Wickremesinghe also said.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will make a special statement in Parliament regarding the OHCHR Investigation on Sri Lanka report today.

The Prime Minister is expected to make this statement at 2pm.

The Parliament convenes for the first time after the OISL report was released on September 16. This is also the first convening of Parliament after the ministers of the national government were sworn in.

President Pranab Mukherjee today expressed hope that India-Sri Lanka relations will scale new heights under the leadership of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe who expressed keenness to have close cooperation with this country.

The two leaders exchanged views when Wickremesinghe called on Mukherjee in New Delhi.

Welcoming Wickremesinghe who is on his first visit to India after becoming the Prime Minister last month, the President congratulated him on his victory in the general elections.

Mukherjee said Wickremesinghe's return to office reflects the faith the people of Sri Lanka have reposed in his leadership and party, an official statement said.

Mukherjee described the geographical proximity and cultural and historic relations between India and Sri Lanka as "very special" and expressed the hope that Wickremesinghe's tenure will be highly successful and bilateral relations will scale new heights.

Wickremesinghe warmly reciprocated the President’s sentiments and said he looks forward to close cooperation with India in the coming days, the statement said.

Wickremesinghe held detailed discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday.

(Outlook)

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will meet President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi today.

Sri Lankan Prime Minister is also scheduled to meet Union Minister of Finance Arun Jaitley later today.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday welcomed his Sri Lankan counterpart and said that he had an excellent discussion with the latter on a number of prominent issues concerning both countries.

Wickremesinghe met External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas (I/C) Dharmendra Pradhan, Power Minister Piyush Goyal and Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, along with several other prominent leaders and dignitaries yesterday at Taj Hotel.

Ranil Wickremesinghe arrived in New Delhi on Monday on a three day bilateral visit.

This is Wickremesinghe's first official international visit after assuming the Prime Minister's office last month.

(ANI)