Galle face, Park in Colombo, Sri Lanka

In a statement issued on September 30, the Foreign Office said that Prime Minister Imran Khan had made a number of diplomatic appointments, including that of retired Maj Gen Saad Khattak as the High Commissioner to Sri Lanka. He was to replace retired Maj Gen Shahid Hashmat in Colombo, who had completed his two-year contract, Dawn news reported.However, an objection was reportedly raised by Defence Minister Pervez Khattak over Gen Khattak's appointment as the High Commissioner at the cabinet meeting held a day after his appointment was made public.The government then decided to cancel the appointment.A source at the Foreign Office claimed that by the time the government changed its mind on his posting, the Sri Lankan government had already been requested for its consent, which is called 'agrement' in diplomatic lingo, for appointing Gen Khattak as the High Commissioner. In diplomatic practice, the consent of the receiving state is mandatory for ambassadorial appointments.The request for agrement for Gen Khattak had to be withdrawn. Withdrawing nominations isn't unusual. Countries occasionally take back nominations. Similarly at times the receiving countries reject nominations. It is for this reason that appointments are not announced by the sending state till the agrement is not received from the receiving state. That practice was followed by Pakistan as well in the past. However, it changed under the PTI government and nominations are now announced before the receipt of the agrement, Dawn said.This diplomatic faux pas aside, Gen Khattak's episode has also brought into spotlight the procedure for appointment of retired military officers against the 20 per cent quota of non-career ambassadors. Although not a hard and fast rule, military officers have traditionally held eight of the 16 slots for non-career ambassadors. These include envoys in Sri Lanka, Ukraine, Brunei, Bosnia, Nigeria, Mauritius, the Maldives and Jordan.Defence Minister Khattak was contacted for his comments, but no response to the query was received from him, Dawn said.It is alleged that rivalry between the minister and Gen Khattak was political in nature as both hail from Nowshera. Defence Minister Khattak had previously blocked his appointment as the chairman of the Evacuee Trust Property Board.Foreign Office spokesman Dr Muhammad Faisal, in response to a query, said: "I cannot comment on what was discussed during the cabinet meeting, but as far as the ambassadorial postings are concerned, it may be noted that these were made following a well-established set of procedures and practices."( With inputs from IANS )

Galle FaceFOLLOW

Galle face, Latest News

Sri Lanka's third international airport, the Jaffna International Airport (JIA), was declared open on Thursday, with an Alliance Air flight with Indian dignitaries landing from Chennai to mark the historic occasion. ...

(life) After three hotels in Goa, the Postcard Hotel goes international with the announcement of two new properties in Sri Lanka and Bhutan. The hotels will open their doors to guests in November. ...

Kosa silk of Chhattisgarh will soon be available in Sri Lankan markets. The weaving style and the shine of the fabric have attracted the Indian ocean island women. ...

Former India opener Gautam Gambhir turned 38 on Monday and wishes poured in from the cricket fraternity for the left-hander. Gambhir, currently a Member of Parliament, also represented Delhi in the domestic circuit and captained the Kolkata Knight Ri ...

Virat Kohli on Friday broke a slew of records enroute his career-best unbeaten 254 as India posted a mammoth 601/5 in the first innings before declaring on Day 2 of the second Test against South Africa. ...

Following Pakistan's dismal performance in the T20I series against Sri Lanka which they lost 0-3, skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed is drawing flak from all quarters in the country. ...

Pakistan may have suffered a 0-3 whitewash in the just concluded T20 international series against a second-string Sri Lanka side, but it was a matter of great respite for the Green Brigade as they turned out to be a perfect host and even the visitors ...

In a diplomatic embarrassment, Pakistan has cancelled the appointment of a retired military officer as its envoy to Sri Lanka, after Defence Minister raised objections. ...