In 2002 Rajapakse became the leader of the opposition and in April 2004 the country's prime minister. "I have visited the Kingdom when I was an ordinary legislator, and subsequently as an opposition leader and prime minister. Now I want to visit the country as the president," he said. Rajapakse, who had met with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdul-aziz during King Fahd's funeral, said: "During the brief audience I had with the king, I was positive that the Kingdom would usher in a new era under him and Sri Lanka could also be a beneficiary of his magnanimity and new foreign policies." Rajapakse promised that Muslim interests would be well looked after under his presidency since he knew the needs of this community which constitutes eight percent of the island's population. He said he would respect the wishes and interests of all communities in the country and try to work for a common goal for the benefit of the entire nation. "I am a new leader and mine will be a new government, and will build a better Sri Lanka with the people's participation," he said.--SPA 1039 Local Time 0739 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/304209