Sunday, Apr 21, 2002
Sunday, Apr 21, 2002 |
| International | ||
|
News:
Front Page |
National |
Southern States |
Other States |
International |
Opinion |
Business |
Sport |
Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary | International
By Nirupama Subramanian
``If I would have any concern, which I do not think I have, it may be even that it is moving too fast,'' the Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister, Vidar Helgesen, told a meeting with the Foreign Correspondents' Association of Sri Lanka. Mr. Helgesen, who has concluded a week-long visit during which he met the President, Chandrika Kumaratunga, the Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, and the leader of the LTTE, Velupillai Prabakaran, said he was ``pleased'' by the commitment of the main players. He said he was especially heartened at Mr. Prabakaran's attempts to emerge as a politician. ``I am encouraged by Mr. Prabakaran's comfort level in acting like a politician. We had a political dialogue with him in the way we have with politicians and he was very relaxed,'' Mr. Helgesen said. However, he said Norway was aware that the ``road will be bumpy'' and that there might be times when the peace process even breaks down. ``But there are no bigger pains that those of war,'' he said. Mr. Helgesen is expected to visit New Delhi in the first week of May to brief the Indian Government about the progress in the peace process, sources said. In New Delhi, there has been a quickening of interest over developments in Sri Lanka, with the Government here preparing to hand over the running of the north-east to the LTTE as an ``interim solution''. The appearance of Mr. Prabakaran on Indian television screens, sparking off demands for his extradition, seems to have catalysed official interest in India, while in Sri Lanka, the outrage it provoked from its neighbour, has reaffirmed that India's goodwill is crucial to the peace process. Mr. Wickremesinghe, who is going to Puttaparthi on a private visit to see the Sai Baba in the first week of June, has planned to fly to New Delhi from there to brief the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, ahead of the mid-June peace talks in Thailand. The Sri Lankan Prime Minister might also stop over in Chennai for an exchange of views with the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, who has come out strongly against the LTTE.
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail
News:
Front Page |
National |
Southern States |
Other States |
International |
Opinion |
Business |
Sport |
Miscellaneous |
|
|
|
The Hindu Group: Home | About Us | Copyright | Archives | Contacts | Subscription Group Sites: The Hindu | Business Line | The Sportstar | Frontline | Home |
Copyright © 2002, The
Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of
this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of
The Hindu
|