NEW DELHI, Jan. 24 (UPI) -- A key Sri Lankan ruling ally said the government would not start a war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
"This is a government, not a baby. We can get angry. The government will not start war with the LTTE," said Bimal Ratnayake, a lawmaker of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, a key partner of the ruling alliance.
JVP, a party with a strong Sinhala nationalist identity, is accused of blocking efforts to find a solution to the island country's decades-old ethnic problem.
"We are for finding a solution through talks. That is our first way. When we see LTTE activities, we have doubts if they will participate in a peace process, but as a government it is our duty to talk," he said.
Ratnayake said the government would not be provoked despite attacks on the military.
"Our target is get peace without dividing the country as well as without a war. That's what we are trying to do. But it's up to the LTTE. If they declare a war, we are prepared but that is not our hope," he said.
Tamil rebels have waged an armed struggle against the Sri Lankan government for decades, demanding a separate nation for the country's Tamil minority.
The two sides entered a truce in 2002. With rebels renewing attacks on security forces, uncertainty looms large over the peace process.
"We think the LTTE has big troubles. They have almost lost the eastern province. They can still kill people by using bombs in civilian places. But in the military sense, they are weak. So now they are carrying out small attacks, and while that is happening, their media front is creating image that the war would start any time," Ratnayake said.
