R Nicholas Burns, US Under Secretary for Political Affairs, was on a regional tour to India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka recently. He was in Sri Lanka to discuss the current status of the peace process with the Sri Lankan Government, Erik Solheim, Norwegian Special Envoy and others and reiterated the strong US desire to see all Sri Lankans work for peace. “We very much support an end to the violence and a return to negotiations, and the maintenance and building up of the Ceasefire Agreement. We think it’s imperative that every step be taken by the Sri Lankan government and other parties to the conflict to show support to the Tamil community, for the needs of the Tamil community, and respect for the rights of the Tamil community;’ Burns added. He also called on the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to resume talks on strengthening the Ceasefire Agreement as soon as possible.
