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Sri Lanka snub to Swedish envoy Sweden's FM denied Sri Lanka visa
(30 minutes later)
Sri Lanka has refused entry to Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, who was to have joined a European diplomatic mission, Mr Bildt has said.Sri Lanka has refused entry to Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, who was to have joined a European diplomatic mission, Mr Bildt has said.
Mr Bildt was to have arrived on Wednesday with David Miliband from the UK and France's Bernard Kouchner.Mr Bildt was to have arrived on Wednesday with David Miliband from the UK and France's Bernard Kouchner.
No reason has yet been given for the refusal but Sri Lanka has had tense relations with the Scandinavian former monitors of its peace process. Sweden is to recall its top diplomat for consultation, Mr Bildt said.
Sweden is to recall its ambassador for consultation, Mr Bildt said. A Sri Lankan foreign ministry official told the BBC this was not a snub but it could not cope with so many high-level delegations at one time.
Mr Miliband and Mr Kouchner have not been excluded. Mr Bildt said they would continue the visit as planned. Sri Lanka has had tense relations with the Scandinavian former monitors of its peace process but its main problems have been with the major ex-mediator, Norway.
Mr Miliband and Mr Kouchner have not been excluded from the visit. Mr Bildt said they would continue as planned.
Ceasefire pressureCeasefire pressure
In his blog, Mr Bildt said he had been told by Colombo that he would not be received as part of the European team and that he had been given no explanation. Mr Bildt told Agence France-Presse news agency: "The Sri Lankan authorities have said that they don't accept me.
He told Associated Press news agency: "This is remarkable. You just don't act this way." "I am not persona non grata because they say I am welcome at another time, but I am not intending to take up that invitation," he said.
He said Sri Lanka was "trying to say that the British and French visit was planned in advance, but it wasn't". Mr Bildt said the Sri Lankan action was "exceedingly strange behaviour" and that he was recalling the top Swedish diplomat in Sri Lanka, charge d'affaires Borje Mattsson, for consultation.
The diplomatic mission is part of international efforts to put pressure on Sri Lanka to call a ceasefire in the north-east, where the army is battling Tamil Tiger rebels. The senior Sri Lankan foreign ministry official told the BBC the country could not cope with all the delegations when facing the challenge of taking care of tens of thousands of civilians displaced by the war with the Tamil Tiger rebels.
The official said there had been an invitation to Mr Bildt for next month.
Wednesday's diplomatic mission is part of international efforts to put pressure on Sri Lanka to call a ceasefire in the north-east, where the army is battling the rebels.
European Union foreign ministers on Monday joined the UN in the call for the truce.European Union foreign ministers on Monday joined the UN in the call for the truce.
The Sri Lankan military has restricted the rebels to a small stretch of land and believes final victory is near.The Sri Lankan military has restricted the rebels to a small stretch of land and believes final victory is near.
However, there is concern for the tens of thousands of civilians who have either fled the conflict zone or are still trapped there.