COLOMBO -- Sri Lanka's ultranationalist government has received a diplomatic shot in the arm from China as it prepares for a showdown early next year at the United Nations Human Rights Council, the Geneva-based body where the South Asian nation has been under international scrutiny for its grisly civil war record.
Beijing's offer featured during official talks this month with Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was elected last November in a landslide. China promised to defend Sri Lanka's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity "at international fora including the United Nations Human Rights Council," Yang Jiechi, China's top foreign policy official, told Rajapaksa during talks in Sri Lanka.
