Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06HELSINKI885
2006-09-04 09:12:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Helsinki
Cable title:
FINLAND AND SRI LANKA CONTACT GROUP
VZCZCXYZ0000 PP RUEHWEB DE RUEHHE #0885 2470912 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 040912Z SEP 06 FM AMEMBASSY HELSINKI TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2407 INFO RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK PRIORITY 0055 RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN PRIORITY 0168 RUEHSW/AMEMBASSY BERN PRIORITY 1105 RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA PRIORITY 0371 RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO PRIORITY 0092 RUEHJA/AMEMBASSY JAKARTA PRIORITY 0077 RUEHKL/AMEMBASSY KUALA LUMPUR PRIORITY 0039 RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 0084 RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA PRIORITY 0689 RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 0096 RUEHPF/AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH PRIORITY 0007 RUEHGP/AMEMBASSY SINGAPORE PRIORITY 0085 RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 0339 RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L HELSINKI 000885
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/03/2016
TAGS: MARR PHUM PINS PREL PTER CE FI
SUBJECT: FINLAND AND SRI LANKA CONTACT GROUP
REF: STATE 140812
Classified By: EU Section Chief Kenneth Kolb, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (
d)
C O N F I D E N T I A L HELSINKI 000885
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/03/2016
TAGS: MARR PHUM PINS PREL PTER CE FI
SUBJECT: FINLAND AND SRI LANKA CONTACT GROUP
REF: STATE 140812
Classified By: EU Section Chief Kenneth Kolb, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (
d)
1. (U) MFA Sri Lanka desk officer Marita Meranto assured
emboff on September 4 that Finland would attend the Sri Lanka
Contact Group's experts meeting in Washington on September
27. She said that because of the press of business arising
from Finland's EU presidency, Finland's representative would
probably come from its Washington embassy. She requested
more information on the meeting's agenda as it became
available.
2. (C) Meranto returned August 31 from a week of
consultations in Sri Lanka. She relayed that a military
commander had told her that a ceasefire at this point in time
would be "suicide" for GOSL be cause the LTTE had become "too
strong" during the break in hostilities. He was surprised
when Meranto asked how long he thought military actions would
continued but replied that it would not/not be "months and
months."
3. (C) Finland and the EU continue to be seized with the
human rights and humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka.
Meranto noted that the dismissal of NGOs from the disputed
areas in the north and east prevented both the delivery of
aid and the monitoring of human rights violations. She said
that organizations outside of the government urged the
international community to press the GOSL, and suggested
using aid as a point of leverage and means of signalling
dissatisfaction with its actions. Meranto opined that since
the GOSL was sensitive to its image in the international
arena, continued international pressure may yield results.
4. (U) An EU experts meeting in Brussels will ponder next
steps on September 6.
WARE
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/03/2016
TAGS: MARR PHUM PINS PREL PTER CE FI
SUBJECT: FINLAND AND SRI LANKA CONTACT GROUP
REF: STATE 140812
Classified By: EU Section Chief Kenneth Kolb, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (
d)
1. (U) MFA Sri Lanka desk officer Marita Meranto assured
emboff on September 4 that Finland would attend the Sri Lanka
Contact Group's experts meeting in Washington on September
27. She said that because of the press of business arising
from Finland's EU presidency, Finland's representative would
probably come from its Washington embassy. She requested
more information on the meeting's agenda as it became
available.
2. (C) Meranto returned August 31 from a week of
consultations in Sri Lanka. She relayed that a military
commander had told her that a ceasefire at this point in time
would be "suicide" for GOSL be cause the LTTE had become "too
strong" during the break in hostilities. He was surprised
when Meranto asked how long he thought military actions would
continued but replied that it would not/not be "months and
months."
3. (C) Finland and the EU continue to be seized with the
human rights and humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka.
Meranto noted that the dismissal of NGOs from the disputed
areas in the north and east prevented both the delivery of
aid and the monitoring of human rights violations. She said
that organizations outside of the government urged the
international community to press the GOSL, and suggested
using aid as a point of leverage and means of signalling
dissatisfaction with its actions. Meranto opined that since
the GOSL was sensitive to its image in the international
arena, continued international pressure may yield results.
4. (U) An EU experts meeting in Brussels will ponder next
steps on September 6.
WARE