Kadirgamar arrives for talks

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, DEC. 14. India and Sri Lanka begin a new round of talks tomorrow, but are unlikely to find common ground on the early revival of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit.

The Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Mr. Lakshman Kadirgamar, who arrived here today is expected to hold discussions with his counterpart, Mr. Jaswant Singh, and will call on the Prime Minister, Mr. A.B. Vajpayee. Reports from Colombo suggest that the revival of the SAARC process tops Mr. Kadirgamar's agenda here. Sri Lanka, SAARC chairman, is keen to hold a meeting of the forum's standing committee of Foreign Secretaries early next year.

To a question, the Foreign Office spokesman today clarified India's latest stand on the SAARC. Ruling out an early revival of the summit, he said the conference could be held at ``an appropriate time.'' The summit can be convened only on the basis of a consensus which was still elusive.

India, however, was in favour of ``technical and expert level meetings'', the spokesman said, adding that New Delhi had an abiding and strong commitment towards the SAARC.

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