Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa is scheduled to leave for Italy, shortly.
The Foreign Ministry in a statement said the Prime Minister will leave for Bologna, Italy, to participate in an international event which is to be graced by the Prime Minister of Italy and dignitaries from other European countries.
Prime Minister Rajapaksa is scheduled to deliver the keynote address at the opening session of the international symposium which will be held in one of Europe’s oldest seats of learning, the University of Bologna.
Meanwhile, responding to various media reports, the Foreign Ministry said at no stage had the Prime Minister requested nor received an invitation to visit the Vatican for an audience with His Holiness, the Pope.
The Prime Minister and the Sri Lankan delegation are expected to leave Italy, at the conclusion of the events in Bologna.
