An official delegation headed by the Director General of Customs of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka visited Moscow these days to participate in the annual International Customs Forum. The delegation also included Ambassador P.M. Amza, Head of the Lankan Diplomatic Mission in Moscow and Mr Pandula De Zoysa, Minister of the Embassy.

On the margins of the forum on 30 October 2024, Sarath Nonis, Head of the Sri Lankan Customs Service and Valery Pikalyov, Head of the Russian Customs Service signed an intergovernmental Agreement on Cooperation and Mutual Assistance in Customs Affairs between the two countries. The agreement creates a legal basis for direct co-operation between the customs authorities of the two countries. It will enable Russian and Lankan customs officers to work together on a wide range of issues, including the implementation of projects to simplify customs procedures, the fight against smuggling, the exchange of information on commodity shipments, cooperation in the analysis of customs statistics, and more.
During the meeting, the parties also outlined areas for the development of bilateral customs co-operation: direct contacts of law enforcement units; exchange of experience in the application and development of the risk management system; education and training of customs personnel, and interaction with the business community.
On the same day, Ambassador P. M. Amza received Mr Sarath Nonis at the Sri Lankan Embassy in Moscow.