We do not meddle in other people's affairs: Khurshid on Lanka

Amid stepped up pressure for support to UN resolution against Sri Lanka on alleged human rights violations, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid today said India will not interfere in the internal matters of that country.

"We do not meddle in other people's affairs. We do not willingly step in and become honest brokers. We do believe in a safe sound advice available to people who might not be talking to each other at the right time," he said, speaking at the International Chamber of Commerce Asia Pacific CEO Forum meeting here.

"We do value this ability to talk to two separate sets of opinions at the same time without being hypocritical, without taking sides and without letting down either side," he said.

Some political parties, including DMK and AIADMK, have been demanding India's support to the resolution against Sri Lanka at a upcoming meeting of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

"India has evolved, and India wishes to evolve continuously, in a nature in which India can speak to two estranged countries at the same time and speak with confidence that we are trusted on both sides," Khurshid said on the issue without elaborating.

He said India was often "accused of being soft, luke warm and accommodating".

"If you know that your national aspirations coincide with the global view of prosperity, there is no reason why you should be speaking in a harsh voice. We have never supported the idea of policing the world," he said.

On relationship with China, Khurshid said India will not shy away from any competition and was willing to learn from its neighbour and engage in a healthy competition.