(LANKAPUVATH | COLOMBO) – Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris has refuted the allegation of purchasing weapons from North Korea.
In a statement issued today, the Foreign Ministry said its attention has been drawn to a news item appearing on the newsfirst.lk website titled “We purchased weapons from North Korea using Black Market Dollars’ – Minister Basil R” dated 31 January 2022.
The Foreign Ministry wishes to state that Foreign Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris has spoken in this regard with his Cabinet colleague, Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa who has categorically denied the comments attributed to him in the said news item.
The Foreign Ministry said it would appreciate it if this response is given the same prominence as the said news item.
In response to the Foreign Ministry statement, News 1st said it quoted excerpts of an interview published last Sunday (30th January 2022) in the Divayina newspaper, where Minister Basil Rajapaksa is quoted as saying that they acquired weapons from North Korea during the civil war using dollars purchased from the black market.
