U.S. disappointed with Sri Lanka's backward movements on democracy

--> The United States expressed disappointment over Sri Lanka's slow progress towards achieving reconciliation and accountability after the end of the war and even more, over taking some backward movement on democracy, such as impeaching the Chief Justice.

Chinese presence in Lanka not a concern'

The United States is not concerned about the increasing Chinese influence in Sri Lanka, the US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, Robert Blake, said here on Wednesday.

Sri Lanka has unique opportunity to forge lasting peace, US Assistant Secretary says

With the Sri Lankan President's victory and the equally strong parliamentary victory following the defeat of LTTE last year, Sri Lanka has a unique opportunity to forge a lasting peace and prosperity after decades of war, the US said.

The United States and India have similar views of Sri Lanka- Assistant Secretary Blake

The United States and India have similar views of Sri Lanka situation and the steps that need to be taken, according to a high ranking US official.
In an interview with India's Rediff website, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Robert Blake has said that the US and India are in agreement with their foreign policy toward Sri Lanka, especially on the resettlement of the remaining 40,000 plus internally displaced persons (IDPs).

Rajapaksha must reach out to Tamils: US

US feels that Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa should reach out to the Tamils in the new political environment following the defeat of LTTE.

"I think it's important for the administration of President Rajapaksa to reach out to the Tamils. He did in fact make a visit up to Jaffna recently," US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, Robert Blake, told BBC in an interview.

US mounts political pressure on Lanka

COLOMBO: Close on the heels of India’s appeal to Sri Lanka to move towards ethnic reconciliation and a meaningful political solution to the 30-year conflict, the US is sending Robert Blake, Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia, to Colombo next week to encourage post-war reconciliation.
Blake will be in Lanka on Monday and Tuesday, the State Department said in Washington.
A former US ambassador to Colombo, he will meet with “government officials, political leaders and civil society,” the department said in a statement.
Lanka opened the gates of the camps on December 1 as part of a plan to close down the widely-condemned displacement camps by the end of January.
But many civilians have stayed put because their villages were destroyed or mined in the long ethnic war.
But the Lankan government says that only 20 per cent of the 112,000 still in the camps had availed of the freedom to move out and come back again, which speaks of the good conditions in the camps.
“We welcome the government of Sri Lanka’s actions to allow increased freedom of movement for IDPs,” a US official said.
“We hope that all Sri Lankans who have been displaced from their homes over the course of the conflict can voluntarily return to their homes and villages in safety and dignity as soon as possible.” “We urge the government of Sri Lanka to continue and strengthen its cooperation with the international community to provide assistance and services to the returnees,” he added.
The US was looking at additional assistance options after providing nearly 58 million dollars in humanitarian aid in the past year, the official stated.
VISIT OF UN ENVOY: At the invitation of the Lankan government, the UN will be sending to Lanka next week Maj Gen Patrick Cammaert as Special Envoy of the UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict.
Between Dec 6 and 11, the retired Dutch Marine Corps General will do follow-up work on the recommendations of the Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict on Lanka within the framework of Security Council Resolution 1612 (2005). He will report to the Security Council Working Group on return to New York.
He will ascertain first hand the situation of the children affected by the recent conflict with a view to ensuring greater child protection.
Besides, he will pay particular attention to the situation of displaced children and the reintegration of children formerly associated with armed groups into civilian life.
He will also meet with government officials, NGOs, civil society representatives and children themselves.