Sri Lanka New President Arrives in Pakistan

Sri Lanka's new president Maithripala Sirisena arrived in Pakistan Sunday for a three-day state visit, after making his first overseas trip as leader to Islamabad's rival India.

Pakistan and Sri Lanka have traditionally enjoyed strong ties, particularly over defense, with Islamabad providing military assistance during its neighbor’s war against Tamil Tiger guerrillas that ended in 2009.

Sirisena swept to power in January, ending a decade of rule by Mahinda Rajapakse, and has already moved to reduce China's influence, which had irked India.

He made his first overseas visit as leader to India in February, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi returning the favor last month.

Modi made a highly symbolic visit to the country's war-ravaged northern Tamil heartland.

Pakistan's foreign office said Sirisena would meet his counterpart President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif Monday.

It said several memorandums of understanding or agreements on cooperation in various fields would be signed after the talks.