Norwegian Special Envoy, defence spokesman have cordial talks

COLOMBO: Norwegian Special Envoy John Hassen-Bauer called on Defence Spokesman, Minister Keheliya Rambukwella at his official residence yesterday. Bauer was accompanied by Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar and diplomats.

The Norwegian delegation held cordial discussions with Rambukwella and expressed their willingness to work with the Government.

They discussed Humanitarian issues, media policy and Prabhakaran's speech.

The Government on President Mahinda Rajapaksa's directive has taken all measures to address the food shortage in Jaffna and Vakarai, the Minister told the Norwegian delegates.

Rambukwella also stressed that there were delays in aid convoys reaching some areas due to disruptive acts by the LTTE and bad weather.

Meanwhile, both parties expressed concern over media policies and urged for better understanding when reporting.

The Norwegian envoy expressed concern over some media reports regarding their role as facilitators in the peace process. The Minister expressed concern over the media policy of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM).

Rambukwella reiterated that the Government has not taken LTTE leader Prabhakaran's speech seriously.

However the Minister requested Norway and the SLMM (as facilitators) to re-examine Prabhakaran's speech. He sought a clarification from the Norwegian delegation over Prabakaran's statement that the Ceasefire Agreement was 'defunct'.