PM Modi with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena during an agreement signing ceremony in Colombo on Friday. (PTI photo)
Sri Lanka was the cornerstone of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's three-nation tour and he pulled out all the stops to ensure his historic visit would mark a turning point in India's relationship with the neighbour.
Emphasising that it was the first standalone bilateral visit to Sri Lanka by an Indian Prime Minister since 1987, Mr Modi was clearly aiming to restore normalcy in ties between the two countries, frayed in recent years when Colombo seemed to be getting closer to China.
"Economics ties are a key pillar of the relationship," he said, in an address to the Sri Lankan parliament - the first time an Indian leader was invited to do so.
His rare address to Parliament was meant to win hearts and minds, starting with the words, "I bring the greetings of 1.25 billion friends and millions of fans of Sri Lankan cricket." The crux of his speech was that the two sides need to heal the hearts of all sections of society.
At a joint press conference with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, Mr Modi addressed the contentious Tamil issue, saying India stands with Sri Lanka in "a new peace mission and equality for all, including Sri Lankan Tamils.''
He also brought up the issue of attacks on Indian fishermen, a key focus of his talks with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena. In a joint media address after the talks, he said, "The fishermen's issue has both livelihood and humanitarian dimensions. It will take some time to resolve."
Colombo has also laid out the red carpet. Lankan Foreign minister Mangala Samaraweera told NDTV, "Mr Modi in his speech extended the hand of friendship not only to the Tamil people of Sri Lanka but to all citizens of Sri Lanka which should be greatly appreciated."
In another first, PM Modi visited the memorial to the Indian Peace Keeping Force outside Colombo that pays homage to the Indian soldiers who lost their lives in the military operation in the late 1980s.
A key objective of his visit is security cooperation between India and Sri Lanka. As he told parliamentarians; "The course of the 21st century is going to be shaped by the currents of the Indian Ocean.''
After PM Modi's talks with Mr Sirisena, the two sides inked four agreements.