US pledges to work more closely with Lanka

by Manjula Fernando

US Secretary of State John Kerry said the US commended the election of the new Government that has pledged to work for greater accountability, democracy and fight corruption in Sri Lanka.

Kerry told the media, prior to a meeting with Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera in Washington, that they were excited about the 100-day program and to learn about the new President ‘moving away from a 30-year war’ towards an ‘inclusive, prosperous and peaceful country’.

He said the January 8 historic vote has put in place a Government that will speak for and to the people and he looked forward to work with the new Foreign Minister, the Department of State in an official release said. Minister Samaraweeera said the Government believed in a new Sri Lanka based on the principle of unity in diversity and they hope to restore the relations between Sri Lanka and US to an “írreversible state of excellence”.

Minister Samaraweera who is currently on an official visit to the US met the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon on Friday.

The foreign media reported that during the discussions with Moon, Samaraweera had stressed the importance of referring the war crimes report on Sri Lanka by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, mandated by the US resolution in March 2014, to a domestic mechanism the Government will put together by August this year.

The media reported that the Foreign Minister had sought putting the report, scheduled to be released on March 25 during the UNHRC regular sessions, on hold until the domestic mechanism is in place.

The Minister also said in Washington that the Government would resume discussions with the South African counterparts next week on a truth-seeking mechanism.

Earlier, he addressed the National Press Club in Washington and a full house at the prestigious Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, in Washington on February 11. He also met US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power.

The US remains the single largest export market for Sri Lanka and the second largest foreign direct investor in the country.

Minister Samawaweera will fly to India enroute to join President Maithripala Sirisena who will be in India on a three-day State visit from today.