Daily Press Briefing
Sean McCormack, Spokesman
Washington, DC
January 6, 2006

SRI LANKA

Secretary Rice Had a Good Meeting with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister / Discussed Current Status of Peace Process, Importance of Strengthening Ceasefire / Praised Efforts of Norway in Facilitating Peace Process Between the Government and the LTTE / U.S. Remains Committed to Working with Sri Lanka to Defeat Terrorism, Promote Peace
Travel by Under Secretary Burns to Colombo

QUESTION: Can touch a bit on the Secretary's meeting with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister yesterday and the ominous prospect of the eternal civil war in Sri Lanka?

MR. MCCORMACK: They had a good meeting, a good meeting yesterday. It was the first time that they had the opportunity to meet. They discussed the current status of the Sri Lankan peace process and the importance of strengthening the ceasefire. Secretary Rice reiterated the United States hoped the talks between the Sri Lankan Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam on ways to strengthen the ceasefire could resume soon.

She also praised the efforts of Norway in this regard. They've played an important role in trying to facilitate the peace process between the government and the LTTE. She expressed concern over the recent upsurge in violence in northern and eastern Sri Lanka. She also lauded the Sri Lankan Government for its restraint in the face of the Tamil Tigers provocations. And she said that the United States remains committed to working with Sri Lanka to defeat terrorism and to promote peace and told the Foreign Minister that Under Secretary Burns does intend to travel to Sri Lanka.

QUESTION: Did the Minister express concern over -- I mean, he had been quoted as saying that the Tamil Tigers were more ruthless than the al-Qaida terrorists.

MR. MCCORMACK: Again, this is a group that is listed as a foreign terrorist organization. We view them as such. I don’t' have anything to add beyond what I've offered at this readout of the Secretary’s meeting.

QUESTION: One further in terms of Burns' visit to Colombo? What's the purpose of the visit actually?

MR. MCCORMACK: Oh, I think he's going to talk about a number of different issues. He'll talk about facilitating peace between the government and the LTTE as well as other issues of regional concern.