Madurika Joseph Weninger, Sri Lanka’s First Ambassador to Romania, presents credentials to President Klaus Iohannis

Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Romania Madurika Joseph Weninger presented her Letters of Credence to Romanian President Klaus–Werner Iohannis, accrediting her as the First Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Sri Lanka to Romania. The credential ceremony took place at the historic Cotroceni Palace in Bucharest recently.

The ceremonial event entailed a Guard of Honour by the esteemed Michael the Brave 30^th Guards Brigade of the Romanian Armed Forces and the presentation of the Letters of Credence followed by a discussion with President Iohannis and his entourage in the Lounge of the Unirii Hall of the Presidential Palace. The Ambassador was accompanied by Attaché of the Embassy R. Ratheesparan.

Ambassador Madurika Weninger conveyed greetings from President Ranil Wickremesinghe to President Iohannis, recalling Sri Lanka’s long-standing friendship with Romania since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1957, and emphasized that bilateral relations have demonstrated substantial growth across various domains, significantly enhancing cooperation in numerous sectors.

President Iohannis extended his warm wishes for the prosperity and wellbeing of both President Wickremesinghe and the people of Sri Lanka. Acknowledging the historical ties between the two nations, he expressed optimism for future collaborations.

Ambassador Weninger conveyed her gratitude to the Romanian Government for its support in establishing the Sri Lankan Embassy in Bucharest. She also recognized Romania’s commendable contribution in providing employment opportunities for over 40,000 Sri Lankan nationals in various sectors, including apparel, construction, hospitality, and agriculture.

The discussions concluded with a shared commitment to further strengthening and expanding friendly relations between Sri Lanka and Romania. Emphasis was placed on enhancing collaboration in economic, trade, investment, and tourism sectors, with a mutual goal of advancing bilateral relations to new heights of cooperation and benefit.

Ambassador Madurika Weninger joined the Sri Lanka Foreign Service (SLFS) in 1998 and served as the Consul General of Sri Lanka in Frankfurt, Germany. Immediately prior to her appointment to Romania, she held the position of Additional Secretary, Ocean Affairs, Environment and Climate Change at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka. She has also served as the Director General, Economic Affairs; Director General, Africa Affairs; Director of the Americas and Europe Division; Director of the Middle East Division; and Director of the Consular Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka.  

Her previous diplomatic assignments entailed the position of Minister/Deputy Chief of Mission in the Sri Lanka Embassy in Austria and the Permanent Mission to the UN in Vienna, and the Sri Lanka Embassy and Permanent Mission of Italy; and later in the United Arab Emirates the position of Counsellor/Head of Chancery. She served as a member of the Sri Lanka delegation to the Board Governors Meetings of the IAEA, Vienna in 2005 & from 2013 to 2016.  She was also a member of the Advisory Group to the CTBTO, Vienna from 2014 to 2016.

Before her entry into diplomacy, she had a successful career in the state media, working in various capacities as a news anchor, an interviewer, a presenter and a producer at the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC), Independent Television Network (ITN) and the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC). 

Her academic credentials include a Master’s Degree in Advanced International Relations (MA) from the University of Vienna/Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, Austria; a Post-Graduate Diploma in International Relations from the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies (BCIS), in Sri Lanka; and a Bachelor’s Degree in Arts (BA) from the University of Kelaniya.