The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said they asked peacebroker Norway to arrange a fresh meeting with the government to discuss their historic peace plan, publicly unveiled Saturday.

LTTE political wing leader S. P. Thamilselvan told reporters in the rebel-held town of Kilinochchi Saturday that they Tigers were keen to resume talks. The last round of talks was held in march in Hakone, Japan.

The LTTE withdrew from the talks in April after accusing the government of failing to deliver on promises made at six rounds of talks since September last year.

"We look forward to continuing our dialogue with the government and to reaching rapid agreement on the creation of an Interim Self-Governing Authority (ISGA) so as to effectively bring normalcy and economic development to the Tamil People in the Northeast," Thamilselvan was quoted as saying on a rebel website.

Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan government asked Tamil Tiger rebels to end their boycott of peace talks and begin negotiations on their historic power-sharing plan publicly unveiled yesterday.

The government's chief peace negotiator G. L. Peiris said the way forward was through negotiations and a genuine commitment towards a lasting solution to a problem that has left more than 60,000 people dead in the past three decades.

"While the disparities between the position of the parties are evident, the government is convinced that the way forward lies through direct discussions of the issues arising from both sets of proposals," Peiris said.

He said in a two-page statement that the government asked peace broker Norway to arrange a face-to-face meeting with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) later this month or in early December.

The Tigers pulled out of peace talks in April after accusing the government of failing to deliver on promises made at six rounds of negotiations held since September last year.

The LTTE handed over its first-ever blueprint for a political power-sharing model Friday through Norway's ambassador here, Hans Brattskar.

The eight-page document seeks the establishment of an Interim Self-Governing Authority (ISGA) in which the Tigers would have a controlling share of power in the war-torn northeast.

The defacto federal model would run for five years before elections are held.

"It differs in fundamental respects from the proposals submitted by the government of Sri Lanka," Peiris said, referring to a draft proposals offered by Colombo on July 17.

"It is the conviction of the government of Sri Lanka that the challenge at present is to consolidate and build up on the gains accruing to the country from the process so far and to direct its future course to reach a sustainable settlement."

Peiris said the government wanted to work towards reaching "common ground" and seek a final solution to the drawn-out conflict.

Both sides have been observing a ceasefire since February last year.