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Lanka gov't wants LTTE's 'guarantees' to resume talks

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

New Delhi, Sept 19, IRNA
Sri Lanka-Govt-LTTE Chief
Claiming that it has handed over a 'formula' to the Norwegian facilitators on resumption of peace talks, Lankan government has set condition that it needed personal 'guarantees' from Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, at the earliest.

"We have worked out a formula which has been handed over to the facilitators. We are now waiting for a response from Prabhakaran," Defense Ministry spokesman and Minister of Policy Planning Keheliya Rambukwella said, Doordarshan reported here on Tuesday.

Claiming that the government was fully committed to the peace process, Rambukwella, however, said, "Peace cannot be blindly accepted given the 23-year experience.

"We need guarantees to the co-chairs, facilitators and to the government from Prabhakaran. The form of guarantees will have to be discussed and we are keeping the options open."

Sri Lanka's donor co-chairs, who met in Brussels on September 12 to review the deteriorating security situation in the island nation and its impact on the Norwegian-brokered peace process, announced that both the government and the Tamil Tiger rebels have agreed to 'unconditional talks' early next month in Oslo.

Welcoming the parties' willingness to resume talks unconditionally, the four co-chairs, comprising the US, Japan, the EU and Norway, urged the parties to 'cease all violence immediately'.

"The parties should use this opportunity to show maximum flexibility regarding the arrangements to be proposed by the facilitator. The meeting should take place urgently in Oslo in the beginning of October, to be agreed to by the parties," the statement said, adding the co-chairs would meet at the end of October to review progress of the proposed talks.

Responding to a question on the progress to be made prior to the review meeting of the co-chairs in October end, Rambukwella said they wanted the response from the rebel leader as quick as possible to move forward.

"The Norwegians have been very fast in certain things. We told them to use the same speed to get the response or the necessary guarantee from Prabhakaran," Rambukwella said, adding the government has already clarified its concerns with regard to the Norwegians' hasty announcement of dates and venue for the proposed talks.

Commenting on the attack on the suspected LTTE gun-running vessel about 120 nautical miles off the Eastern coast, the defense spokesman said the vessel 'is suspected to have come from an Indonesian port and is carrying artillery and anti-aircraft weapons' for the rebels.

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