LTTE leader rules out talks

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KILLINOCHCHI, Nov 12: The London-based LTTE theoretician Anton Balasingham, who arrived in the country last week , told journalists on Thursday that it was unlikely that the LTTE would be able to arrive at a power-sharing strategy with the government of President Kumaratunga.

His statement came just hours after the LTTE guerrilla leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, held talks with the Norwegian foreign minister, Jan Peterson, about getting the government to accept the LTTE's proposals for a separate interim administration of the northeast.

Norway has, over the past few months, intensified their role as peace facilitators between the government and the LTTE despite a spate of ceasefire violations and killings of anti-LTTE Tamils and military intelligence Officers.

Mr Peterson, accompanied by the deputy Norwegian foreign minister, Vidar Helgessan, held a two hour meeting with the LTTE leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran. They arrived in the LTTE-controlled territory with a special Norwegian delegation on Thursday morning,

Peterson had delivered a special message from President Kumaratunga to the LTTE leader, which had stated that any solution to the LTTE demand for a separate state should be within a united Sri Lanka.

"This is what she has told us over and over again. There is nothing in her new message that makes us feel that she is serious about peace talks. Her visit to India last week to finalize the defence agreement with India only proves this," Balasingham said describing the proposed joint defence agreement between India and Sri Lanka as a 'thing which could only bring forth misfortune'.

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