India today made it clear to Sri Lanka that there need to be made all efforts to ensure that the ceasefire between the Lankan forces and the LTTE not only holds but also gets strengthened. New Delhi also suggested that Colombo work out a devolution package that has the backing of all major political forces in Lanka.This was conveyed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera, who made a stopover in Delhi, on his way back from talks in Oslo, to brief the Indian leadership on the current state of the peace process.While conveying India’s commitment to the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Sri Lanka, Singh also told Samaraweera that the ‘‘legitimate aspirations’’ of all sections of the Sri Lankan society needed to be addressed expeditiously.Taking this forward, the PM elaborated to suggest that the Rajapakse government and the LTTE needed to work towards a devolution package that would reflect a consensus among all major political parties and restore ethnic harmony.On his part, Samaraweera conveyed to the Prime Minister that war was not an option for his government and that it remained committed to a political solution to the ethnic issue.The Lankan government, he informed, had invited the LTTE to start a dialogue to strengthen the ceasefire. Also, an all-party conference in Sri Lanka had decided to set up an Advisory Committee to look into a suitable devolution package. Samaraweera also explained the current security situation in the country. Both sides agreed to remain in close touch on the developments.
