U.S. looks forward to working with Lanka President-elect Sirisena

United States Secretary of State John Kerry has said that he is looking forward to working with Sri Lanka's President-elect Maithripala Sirisena.

In a statement issued late Thursday, and reported by the Lanka Page web site, Secretary Kerry said the Sri Lankan people deserve great credit on the successful conclusion of their elections.

"They turned out in great numbers to exercise their democratic rights and every vote was a victory for Sri Lanka. The United States applauds the Sri Lankan Elections Commissioner, the security forces, Sri Lankan civil society, and the candidates themselves for making sure this election was not marred by unrest and for ensuring a significant drop in campaign-related violence. It will be important for that effort to continue in the coming days," Kerry was quoted, as saying in an official statement.

Kerry also commended outgoing President Mahinda Rajapaksa for accepting the results of the election.

"I look forward to working with President-elect Maithripala Sirisena as his new government works to implement its campaign platform of a Sri Lanka that is peaceful, inclusive, democratic, and prosperous," he added.