IORA summit: Indian External Affairs Minister expected here next week

• All Foreign Ministers of IORA states will attend  

 Indian External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar is  expected to visit Sri Lanka next week to attend the IORA (Indian Ocean Rim  Association) summit.   

The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Indian Ocean Rim  Association (IORA) member states as well as other senior Ministers of  IORA Member States and Dialogue Partners will arrive in Sri Lanka next  week for the 23rd IORA Council of Ministers, which Sri Lanka is hosting  on October 11, 2023 in Colombo. 

 
The Council of Ministers meeting in Colombo will see the  participation of sixteen ministers including the Foreign Ministers of  Bangladesh, India, Iran, Mauritius, Malaysia and South Africa as well as  Ministerial and senior-level participation from Australia, Comoros,  France, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, the Maldives, Mozambique, Oman,  Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Somalia, Tanzania, Thailand, United  Arab Emirates and Yemen (member countries) and from China, Egypt, Saudi  Arabia, Germany, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Russia, Türkiye,  United Kingdom and United States of America (dialogue partners). The  Council of Ministers is the highest decision-making body of IORA.  Foreign Minister Ali Sabry will chair the Council when the current  Chair, Foreign Minister of Bangladesh, will hand over the chairmanship to  the Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka.  

The Council will be preceded by the 25th meeting of the Committee of IORA Senior Officials (9-10 October) which will be chaired by Foreign Secretary Aruni Wijewardane.   The Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), established in 1997, is an intergovernmental organisation of States on the rim of the Indian Ocean. Its membership spans Africa, West Asia, South Asia, South East Asia and the Oceania. Today, IORA’s membership has expanded to 23 Member States and 11 Dialogue Partners. Sri Lanka will assume the chairmanship of IORA for the period 2023 to 2025 at the 23rd Council of Ministers’ Meeting.