Colombo - Senior General Than Shwe, the head of Myanmar's military junta arrived for a three-day visit in Sri Lanka on Thursday, officials said.

Sri Lankan officials said the main purpose of Than Shwe's visit were talks on trade relations and visits to main religious sites on the island.

Than Shwe is expected to pay homage to sacred Buddha relics in a historic Buddhist temple in the central district of Kandy and also visit several other Buddhist shrines in the region.

It is the first visit of a Myanmar leader to Sri Lanka in 43 years.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa welcomed Than Shwe at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake, near Colombo with a military guard of honour.

Rajapaksa visited Myanmar in June, after Myanmar provided aid for internally displaced Sri Lankans in the last phase of the government's war against the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. (dpa)