India says attacks on Indians in Australia could hit ties

Indian Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna spoke on the telephone with Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith amid a highly publicised spate of street crime against Indian students in recent months in Melbourne, Australia’s second largest city.

A foreign ministry statement says Krishna told Smith that several Australian officials had promised to treat the attacks with seriousness but “the incidents seem to be continuing”.

He said the attacks threateneed to “cast a shadow on our otherwise excellent bilateral relations”.

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