Sri Lanka as a sovereign state would only deal with the Central government of India and not with provincial governments, Cabinet spokesperson and Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said.

Speaking at the weekly Cabinet press briefing yesterday Minister Rambukwella said the government would therefore not respond to the resolution passed in the Tamil Nadu State Assembly yesterday against Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka will maintain cordial relations with India through a continuous dialogue and as a sovereign nation, the country will only respond to the Central government of India, the Minister said.

"Sri Lanka and India have cordial relations on the basis of respecting each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity and issues arising between the two countries are discussed on the basis of this understanding," he said.