The aerial photo taken on September 17 shows the office and auditorium complex of the Sri Lanka Military Academy assisted by China. (mod.gov.cn/Photo by Meng Xing)
COLOMBO, SRI LANKA, Dec. 17 (ChinaMil) -- The handover ceremony of the office and auditorium complex of the Sri Lankan Military Academy was held in Diyatalawa, a former garrison town in the central highlands of Sri Lanka on December 15,local time.
Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena and Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Cheng Xueyuan unveiled the new building in the presence of over 150 people, including Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake, commander of the Sri Lankan Army, members of a Chinese military delegation, and senior generals of the Sri Lankan military.
Addressing the gathering at the ceremony, Sri Lanka Military Academy Commandant Brigadier H.H.A.S.P.K Senaratne said that the China-Sri Lanka friendship is deeply rooted in the hearts of people of the two countries, and he sincerely thanked China for building this treasured and state-of-the-art auditorium for the Sri Lankan military. Designed in the shape of a lotus, the national flower of Sri Lanka, the office and auditorium complex will play an important role in the training of Sri Lanka military personnel. Its completion has further strengthened the friendly relations between the two countries and the two militaries.
Ambassador of China to Sri Lanka Cheng Xueyuan said that China and Sri Lanka are good neighbors, good friends and good partners. Whatever changes may happen in the international situation, the two countries will always support each other and move forward together. The office and auditorium complex of the Sri Lanka Military Academy will become another symbol and witness of the friendship between the two countries and two militaries. Under the strategic partnership framework of China-Sri Lanka's sincere mutual support and friendship from generations, the relations between the two militaries have remained stable and made substantial progress, functioning as an important positive factor in the development of bilateral ties, Cheng said.
The building covers an area of 7,200 square meters and is China's first military construction project to assist Sri Lanka. Started in October, 2014, the building was designed and supervised by the National Defense Engineering Institute of the Chinese PLA's Academy of Military Sciences, and built by Yunnan Construction and Investment Holding Group (YCIH).