Colombo (AsiaNews) - Calling on the people to "leave no room for divisions", this morning Ranil Wickremasinghe was sworn in as new Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, in the presence of President Maithripala Sirisena.
The political leader, who was nominated by the district of Colombo in the August 17 general elections, has consolidated his victory by getting 500,506 votes. It is the highest number of votes cast in favor of a candidate in the electoral history of the country.
A lawyer by profession, Wickremasinghe has held the role of prime minister four times since he entered Parliament in 1977. As a politician he holds the record of having kept his seat in parliament for 38 years running.
He was elected prime minister the first time in 1993-1994, after the assassination of President Ranasinghe Premadasa. He served as a second time from 2001 to 2004, when the UNP won the parliamentary elections in 2001. President Sirisena appointed him Prime Minister last January after winning the presidential election.
Wickremasinghe has received congratulatory messages from various world leaders. Among the first was Narendra Modi, his counterpart in India, who wrote in a tweet: "I am confident that, under the leadership of Dr. Wickremasinghe, bilateral relations between India and Sri Lanka will grow stronger".
Hua Chunying, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said Beijing "believes that with the new government, Colombo will achieve great progress in its economic and social development. China is ready to work with Sri Lanka to consolidate the traditional friendship and enhance mutual cooperation".
Wickremasinghe has also received best wishes from the European Union and France.