Colombo, June 9: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday landed in Colombo, as part of his first foreign visit, a day after addressing the People's Majlis in Male. The first statement he made after visiting the terror-attacked church was that 'Cowardly acts of terror cannot defeat the spirit of Sri Lanka'.

PM Modi made an unscheduled stop at one of the churches - St. Anthony's Shrine, Kochchikade - hit during the Easter Sunday terror attacks on and expressed his solidarity with the kin of terror-attack victims. Around 250 people had died in the attacks on Easter Sunday on April 21. PM Narendra Modi's Visit to Sri Lanka Will Send Message Country is Safe For Travel, Says Envoy Austin Fernando

Expressing his solidarity with the people of Sri Lanka, the Indian Premier stated, "I am confident that Sri Lanka will rise again. Cowardly acts of terror cannot defeat the spirit of Sri Lanka. India stands in solidarity with the people of Sri Lanka."

Later in the day, PM also addressed the Indian Community at India House in Colombo. He said, "I am happy to share that the Indian community overseas and the Government of India are on the same page when it comes to several issues."

Adding on he said, "Today India’s position in the world is getting stronger and a large part of that credit goes to the Indian diaspora. Wherever I go, am told about the successes and accomplishments of the Indian diaspora."

PM Modi's visit to the island nation is considered as a sign of India's expression of solidarity with Sri Lanka and the Premier made it clear that India will provide full support to the Sri Lankan government. The Indian Premier was given an official welcome at the President's secretariat earlier and met Tamil National Alliance (TNA) delegation.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 09, 2019 03:54 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).