Pranab leaves for Sri Lanka, Maldives

New Delhi, Jan 9: External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee today left for Sri Lanka from where he will go to the Maldives to invite the leaders of the two countries to participate in the SAARC Summit being held here in April.

The External Affairs Minister will also hold discussions with the Sri Lankan leadership on the latest developments, including the security situation in the island nation.

Mr Mukherjee will visit Pakistan on January 13 for inviting President Pervez Musharraf to attend the SAARC Summit.

In Islamabad, he will also have talks with his Pakistani counterpart Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri.

He will fly to Cebu island in the Philippines to join Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the re-scheduled East Asia Summit (EAS) and the India-ASEAN Summit on January 14-15.

UNI