Sri Lankan youth show their paper-cutting works in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 10, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Hai)

"We are very pleased to see that the friendship between Sri Lanka and China has become stronger over time, the partnership has been continuously upgraded, and the mutually beneficial cooperation has increased," said Jinith De Silva, president of the Sri Lanka China Society, in a recent exclusive interview with Xinhua.

Friday marks the 68th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Sri Lanka.

Noting that Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake successfully paid a state visit to China last month, De Silva said the series of consensus reached by the two heads of state and the fruitful outcomes of the visit "have made Sri Lankans full of confidence in the two countries to create a better future together."

"I believe that Sri Lanka and China should take the anniversary as an opportunity to deepen the friendship between the two countries, and continue to inherit and carry forward the spirit of the Rubber-Rice Pact," said De Silva.

Sri Lankan and Chinese youth learn paper-cutting in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 10, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Hai)

He noted that the Sri Lanka China Society was established in 1981 and is one of the most important China friendship groups in Sri Lanka. After its establishment, the association has been working hard to enhance mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples.

De Silva recalled that after 2012, the development of Sri Lanka-China friendship entered the fast lane, and the society's contact with China became more frequent.

"With the support from the Chinese side, we have regularly held children's art exhibitions between Sri Lanka and China in Colombo since 2012," De Silva said, adding that with the participation of the Sri Lanka China Society, the friendly exchanges between the two peoples are increasing.

Zhu Song (L), the director of Confucius Classroom of Sabaragamuwa University, interacts with faculty members studying Chinese at the classroom during a Chinese Language Day event in the university in the southern foothills of Sri Lanka's central mountains, April 3, 2024. (Confucius Classroom in Sabaragamuwa University/Handout via Xinhua)

De Silva went to China for the first time in 1997, and was deeply attracted by China's rapid development speed and the positive and enthusiastic spirit of the Chinese people.

"Since then, I started to work hard to enhance Sri Lanka's understanding of China. I have published more than 80 articles in newspapers introducing China and the friendship between the two countries, and have also compiled and published Sinhala books related to this. I really want to pass on China's development experience and friendship to the people of Sri Lanka," he said.

He said that in recent years, many Sri Lankan delegations have visited China, and Sri Lankan college students have studied in China through various scholarships and projects.

Students demonstrate calligraphy works at the "Chinese Culture Meets Students of Sri Lanka" event held in Malabe, Sri Lanka, June 25, 2024. (Xinhua/Wu Yue)

De Silva said that he wishes to see more Sri Lankan college students go to study in China, more Chinese tourists come to Sri Lanka, and more major projects for Sri Lanka-China cooperation, such as the Colombo Port City and Hambantota Port, continue to bring benefits to the two countries and peoples.

"The development history of Sri Lanka and China since the establishment of diplomatic relations has proved that the two countries can achieve win-win development by working together. I fully believe that the prospects for future friendship and cooperation between Sri Lanka and China are limitless," said de Silva.