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President leaves for India today

NEW DELHI, Tuesday (AFP) President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga will arrive in India today on her first visit to the northern neighbour since a Congress-led coalition government took office in New Delhi in May.

Indian Foreign Ministry officials said President Kumaratunga would be accompanied by Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar and other officials during her five-day trip.

"India-Sri Lanka relations have seen significant progress in the recent past," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

"Political relations are close, trade and investments have increased dramatically, infrastructural linkages are expanding, defence cooperation is under discussion and there is a general, broad-based improvement across all sectors of bilateral cooperation," it said.

Last month, an official in Colombo said the two sides had finalised a draft agreement to boost military cooperation. The draft was completed after talks on stepping up training for Sri Lanka's troops, the sharing of intelligence, and equipping Sri Lankan forces with Indian hardware. In May, New Delhi pledged to maintain support for Colombo's efforts to end its long-running ethnic conflict.

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