The
U.S. Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding
today that provides humanitarian demining training
to the Sri Lankan Army.
The MOU was
signed by Mr. Austin Fernando, Secretary, Ministry
of Defense. Mr. James F. Entwistle, Chargé
d'Affaires at the United States Embassy, represented
the U.S. Government.
Under the terms
of the agreement, six demining experts - including
four Americans - will train Sri Lankan military
personnel in techniques to demine Sri Lankan
soil to international standard. The training
will cost approximately 2.2 million dollars.
It will begin on August 24 and is scheduled
to continue through February 2004.
The training
provided under this program is a continuation
of U.S. assistance in demining Sri Lanka. In
April-October 2002 an American-funded Quick
Reaction Demining Force (QRDF) removed nearly
1,000 mines and 150 items of unexploded ordnance
from 121,348 square meters of land on the Jaffna
Peninsula. In March-July 2003 a second QRDF
cleared an additional 120,000 square meters.
The objective
of this new phase of demining assistance is
to prepare Sri Lankan military forces to clear
mined areas of Sri Lanka to international standards.
In signing the grant, Mr. Entwistle noted that
"the American Embassy is proud to be able
to assist the people and Government of Sri Lanka
in this important step of rehabilitation and
reconstruction." The Chargé emphasized
that the training responds to "priorities
set by the Sri Lankan government." He noted
that "resulting demining will be undertaken
for the benefit of all Sri Lankans - Tamil,
Sinhalese, and Muslim - and will help Sri Lankan
self-sufficiency in demining."
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