Colombo: Visiting External Affairs Minister SM Krishna`s meeting with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa prior to his talks with his counterpart GL Peiris is being viewed by a newspaper here as a breach of protocol.
Krishna, who is in Sri Lanka on a four-day visit, held talks with Rajapaksa ahead of his meeting with Peiris, which was contrary to the diplomatic norm, a newspaper reported.
On his arrival here on Thursday, Krishna was received by Peiris at the airport. However, the newspaper said that no Sri Lankan Foreign Minister had ever been received by his Indian counterpart at the airport when they visited India.
It also alleged that the nine-page minutes of the meeting released after the India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission talks was drafted by New Delhi.
Quoting Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry officials, the newspaper said drafting such minutes was a responsibility of the host country.
PTI
