New posting of envoy sparks diplomatic row with Sri Lanka
GORDON Brown's decision to appoint a special envoy to Sri Lanka sparked a diplomatic row yesterday, as the war-torn Asian state rejected the move as "a disrespectful intrusion".
Mahinda Rajapaksa, the president, and his cabinet objected that London had failed to consult Colombo before the "unhelpful" appointment of former defence secretary Des Browne.
David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, told Rohitha Bogollagama, his counterpart in Sri Lanka, that the appointment was not intended to be "unilateral".
Downing Street said that Mr Browne would focus on the humanitarian crisis in the northern region and Sri Lanka's work on a political solution to the conflict with the separatist Tamil Tiger rebels.
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Friday 25 May 2012
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