Sri Lankan President in Australia, talks trade and cooperation

Sydney May 24 (IANS) Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena on Wednesday began his visit to Australia aimed at boosting trade and cooperation.

Australia imports around 171 million Australian dollars ($127.38 million) of Sri Lankan goods every year with apparel rubber products clay construction materials and the nation s renowned tea making up the majority of purchases Xinhua news agency reported.

For the Sri Lankans 218 million Australian dollars ($209.34 million) of cargo is imported annually with the most popular items including dairy vegetables paper animal feed and lentils.

Our deep and enduring friendship is anchored in shared history as Commonwealth countries and through our shared interests as Indian Ocean nations Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said in a statement.

The discussions will focus on new areas like education defence science technology and broader economic development.

Also said to be high on the agenda are talks focused on combating human trafficking in the Indian Ocean.

--IANS
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