In the framework of the visit to the XXIV St. Petersburg International Economic Forum which was held from 2-5 June 2021, Sri Lankan delegation led by Hon. Wimal Weerawansa, Minister of Industries of Sri Lanka and Hon. Ajith Nivard Cabraal State Minister of Money & Capital Market and State Enterprise Reforms of Sri Lanka visited the Hermitage museum in St. Petersburg. H.E. Prof. M.D. Lamawansa, Ambassador of Sri Lanka in the Russian Federation also joined the two Sri Lankan ministers in this visit.

The State Hermitage Museum is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia and it is the second-largest art museum in the world. It was founded in 1764 when Empress Catherine the Great acquired an impressive collection of paintings from the Berlin merchant Johann Ernst Gotzkowsky. The Hermitage art museum in St. Petersburg founded by Catherine the Great as a court museum. It adjoined the Winter Palace and served as a private gallery for the art amassed by the empress.