Norway meet seeks to end Lanka bloodshed
Colombo claims killing of 13 more rebels
Afp, Colombo
Peace broker Norway is holding a crucial meeting with Sri Lanka's top aid donors this week in a bid to halt a new wave of bloodshed, but analysts Sunday said they see little prospect of a breakthrough. The formal meeting on Tuesday would follow a preparatory gathering of officials on Monday in Norway's capital, Oslo, and explore ways of bringing the government and Tamil Tiger rebels back to peace negotiations, a Norwegian statement said. Oslo-brokered peace talks collapsed in October last year and since then diplomatic efforts have failed to end violence in the bitter ethnic conflict which has claimed more than 60,000 lives in the past 35 years. More than 5,000 people have died in the latest wave of fighting since December 2005 despite a truce in place since February 2002. "The purpose of the meeting is to share information and views," Norway's International Development Minister Erik Solheim said in the statement. Four "co-chairs" -- Japan, the US, the European Union and Norway -- would analyse the deteriorating situation since their last meeting in November, he said. Richard Boucher, US Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia, and Japan's special envoy Yasushi Akashi would attend the meeting, the statement said, while Andreas Michaelis would represent the EU presidency and James Moran the European Commission. Norwegian diplomats played down expectations of a breakthrough, saying they may not even issue a statement at the end of the talks. Sri Lankan retired top diplomat Nanda Godage said Norway's tone was expected. "They don't have much room to manoeuvre," he said. Diplomats said Tuesday's Olso meeting could discuss ways of persuading the two sides to get back to the table, but using aid as a weapon was ruled out amid a split between the US and the Europeans on the issue. Meanwhile, elite Sri Lankan troops killed at least 13 Tamil Tiger rebels in clashes in the north of the country, the defence ministry said yesterday. Members of the special forces attacked the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) at two locations in the northern district of Vavuniya on Saturday, killing a total of 13 guerrillas, the ministry said in a statement. Both sides routinely make casualty claims that are impossible to independently verify. There was no immediate comment from the rebels.
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