Trincomalee Consultations - 2018
Events
"Pathfinder Foundation Conducts Second Regional Conference - “Trincomalee Consultations 2018” . Following the successful first regional conference held in 2017 under the theme ‘Regional Cooperation for Economic Prosperity and Maritime Security in the Bay of Bengal’, Trincomalee Consultations - 2018’ was conducted by Pathfinder Foundation’s Centre for Indo-Lanka Initiatives on March 27.
The event, convened in collaboration with two New Delhi based think tanks ‘Carnegie India’ and ‘Vivekananda International Foundation’, was sponsored by Japan. The theme of the conference was “A Secure and Safe Bay of Bengal For Common Development and Prosperity”.
The chief guest, State Minister of Defence, Ruwan Wijewardene, delivered the opening address focusing on the role of Sri Lanka in the Bay of Bengal and wider Indian Ocean. The keynote speaker Governor of the Central Bank, Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy, highlighted the need for integration of the Bay of Bengal countries for common prosperity under a rule-based framework. Fumio Shimizu, Deputy Director General, of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan spoke about Japanese interests in the Bay of Bengal and on-going cooperation between Japan and Sri Lanka. Admiral Anil Chopra, Member of National Advisory Security Board of India emphasized the critical importance of stability in India’s neighbourhood to its prosperity and the need for enhancing maritime governance and security. The welcome address was delivered by Bernard Goonethilleke, Chairman, Pathfinder Foundation.
Ambassador of Japan Kenchi Sugunuma; High Commissioner of Bangladesh Riaz Hamidulla; Sumith Naknadala, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who was former Secretary General of BIMSTEC; Deputy High Commissioner for India, Arindam Bagchi; Deputy High Commissioner for Australia Tim Huggins; Former Commander of the Army, General Daya Rathnayake; Former Commander of Sri Lanka Navy, Admiral Jayantha Perera; former Vice Chanceller of KDU, Major General Milinda Peiris; Director of Bandaranaike Center for International Studies Dr. Harinda Vidanage; Luxman Siriwardena and K Balasndaram representing Pathfinder Foundation, and Ms. Imogen Canavan of Max Planck Foundation (Germany) were among those who graced the occasion. Countries attending the event were Bangladesh, India, Japan, Myanmar, Nepal, Singapore and Sri Lanka."
