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Sri Lanka PM Arrives in India to Hold Bilateral Talks

Sri Lankan PM’s visit comes days after India showed its unwillingness to attend the SAARC summit in November.

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Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe arrived here on Tuesday on a three-day official visit to India.

Wickremensinghe will hold bilateral talks with Prime Minister Modi on Wednesday, according to the External Affairs Ministry.

His visit assumes significance as India, citing Pakistan's sponsorship of terrorism in the region, last week had pulled out of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit that was scheduled to be held in Islamabad in November.

The Indian move came after the 18 September cross-border terror attack on an Army camp at Uri in Jammu and Kashmir that claimed the lives of 20 soldiers.

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Following India's move, Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan also followed suit, citing the same reason, virtually isolating Pakistan in the region.

Earlier, Sri Lanka had also expressed its unwillingness to attend the SAARC Summit, saying the prevailing environment in the region is not conducive for holding the summit.

On Wednesday, Wickremesinghe will also hold meetings with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Road Transport and Highways and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari, and Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan.

Later in the evening, he will call on President Pranab Mukherjee.

The Sri Lankan Prime Minister will attend the opening plenary of the India Economic Summit on Thursday along with Minister of State for Commerce Nirmala Sitharaman.

Wickremesinghe will leave for Colombo on Thursday evening.

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