Sri Lanka to participate in Asia-Pacific security meet

MALAYSIA: The Association of Southeast Asian Nations will let Sri Lanka take part in future meetings of Asia's biggest security conference, Malaysia's foreign minister said Tuesday.

"ASEAN (has) agreed to admit Sri Lanka as a new participant" in the ASEAN Regional Forum, or ARF, Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said, adding that it was subject to consensus approval from ARF members. If ARF members agree during their two-day annual meeting in Kuala Lumpur starting Thursday, Sri Lanka would be the group's 27th member, he said. Kuala Lumpur

(AP)