Foreign Minister of Japan Taro Kono is scheduled to visit Sri Lanka on January 05,  the Foreign Ministry said. 

The Japanese foreign minister will be the first high-profile foreign delegate to visit Sri Lanka in 2018. 

He is expected to hold bilateral discussions with President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickcrmesinghe and Foreign Minister Tilak Marapana. 

The Foreign Ministry says this is the first visit by a Japanese Foreign Minister in 15 years.

It is learnt that Japan will be a key international partner in terms of Sri Lanka's proposed accountability mechanism.