Mar 30, Colombo: United States Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Robert Blake said that LTTE’s successful deployment of an offensive air capability is a matter of great concern.
In an interview with a Sri Lankan daily ‘Daily News’, Ambassador Blake said that the United States have worked with the Government of Sri Lanka to stop the flow of arms and terrorist financing to the LTTE since US designated the LTTE as a Foreign Terrorist Organization in 1997.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested 15 suspects in August 2006 for conspiring to buy surface-to-air missiles in the U.S. and trying to bribe U.S. officials to get the Tamil Tigers removed from the U.S. list of terrorist organizations.
When asked whether the US has changed its travel warning, the Ambassador said there was no substantive change as they see no specific threat to Americans who intend to travel to the tourist areas in the Cultural Triangle or those in further south.
The latest travel warning on Sri Lanka by the US State Department was issued in October 2006.
Blake stressed that there can be no military solution to the conflict between the government and the LTTE and urged both sides to cease hostilities so talks can take place on a negotiated settlement.
“The United States believes Sri Lanka now has an important opportunity to achieve peace. We very much hope that the power-sharing proposal that emerges from the APRC process will be a credible one that meets the aspirations of the Tamil, Sinhalese and Muslim people of Sri Lanka. This could then form the basis for talks leading to a negotiated settlement,” he said.
The Ambassador said that the US welcomed Foreign Minister Bogollagama’s remarks during his recent visit to Washington that the government’s peace initiative is on track to seek a broad-based political consensus in the south in favor of political proposals that would lead to a sustainable peace.
No comments:
Post a Comment