The Norwegian Government is deeply concerned by the continuing violence in Sri Lanka over the past months, which is undermining the Ceasefire Agreement between the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

As facilitator, Norway has sought for the past three weeks to convene a meeting between the parties, at their request, to discuss implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement. We note with regret that the LTTE have not accepted the Norwegian proposal for a venue, while the GOSL has done so.

The Government has decided to send retired Major General Trond Furuhovde, former Head of Mission of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, to Sri Lanka within the next month as its special representative. Major General Furuhovde will consult with both parties on the security situation and the implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement.

Norway will also host an extraordinary meeting of the Sri Lanka co-chairs (the USA, the EU (the European Commission and the UK EU Presidency), Japan and Norway in New York on 19 September. The aim of this meeting is to address the need to strengthen respect for the Ceasefire Agreement in the increasingly difficult security situation.