Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe returned to Sri Lanka on Thursday morning after undergoing surgery at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore, the United National Party confirmed.
In a statement issued on April 9, the UNP said Wickremesinghe arrived at Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake earlier in the day. The 77-year-old former president had departed for Singapore on March 15 to undergo the procedure.
The party said that, in line with medical advice, Wickremesinghe is expected to spend several weeks in recuperation and will maintain a low public schedule during that period. Neither the UNP nor Wickremesinghe’s office has disclosed the nature of the surgery.
Wickremesinghe served as Sri Lanka’s president from July 2022 until November 2024, taking office during the height of the sovereign debt crisis and negotiating the country’s Extended Fund Facility arrangement with the International Monetary Fund. He lost the September 2024 presidential election to Anura Kumara Dissanayake.
His return comes a day after former Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo shared a photo of a courtesy call on him in Singapore, which was the first public confirmation that the former president was recuperating from the procedure. The UNP has remained Wickremesinghe’s political base since he left office, and the party continues to be in discussions with the Samagi Jana Balawegaya over a broader opposition realignment.
