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Journalism of Courage
With some pro-active diplomacy in mind in the backdrop of the escalated violence in his country, Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse will be arriving in New Delhi on April 1 for the SAARC summit, which begins two days later.
According to sources, apart from the bilateral meetings with PM Manmohan Singh and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Rajapakse will be holding talks with the US, China and Japan—attending the conference as observers.
While China and Japan are represented by its Foreign Ministers, the US will be represented by Richard A Boucher, assistant secretary of state, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs.
The sources said the Sri Lankan president will be making use of the opportunity to have “useful” discussions with both Japanese Foreign Minister Aso Taro and his Chinese counterpart Li Zhaoxing.
“With so many important dignitaries set to arrive for the summit, President Rajapakse would like to make most of the opportunity,” an official at the Sri Lankan High Commission in New Delhi said.
