By Colombo Telegraph –
“Despite the lack of direct contact, the LTTE seems to maintain a deep interest in the U.S. Based on his recent meeting with Balasingham at the September peace talks in Thailand, Milinda Moragoda reported that the Tiger spokesman peppered him with questions on where the U.S. stands with regard to the conflict” the US Embassy Colombo informed Washington.
Balasingham sniffed, ‘what for? To buy arms?’
The Colombo Telegraph found the relevant leaked cable from the WikiLeak database. The cable is classified as “SECRET” by the Deputy Chief of Mission W. Lewis Amselem and written by the US Ambassador Ashley Wills on October 1, 2002.
Ambassador Wills wrote “Moragoda’s impression was that Balasingham was ‘obsessed’ on the subject. In one conversation, for example, when Moragoda noted that he was going to the U.S. after the conclusion of talks, Balasingham sniffed, ‘what for? To buy arms?’ Moragoda said he had jokingly replied that he had done that during his last visit.”
Placing a comment Ambassador Wills wrote “In comments tending to back up Moragoda’s report, we have heard from other contacts that the LTTE is very worried about the stance of the U.S. towards the group. This concern seems to have spiked in the aftermath of September 11 and continued on from that date. At the heart of the LTTE’s interest seems to be a nagging fear that the U.S. may one day directly confront the LTTE. Many Sri Lankans, including Moragoda, believe that this concern about the U.S. and its reaction is one of the factors driving the LTTE’s continued involvement in the peace process.”
Below we give a part of the secret cable;
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 001828 SIPDIS NOFORN DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS, S/CT NSC FOR E. MILLARD LONDON FOR POL/RIEDEL E.O. 12958: DECL: 10-01-12 TAGS: PGOV PTER PINS PINR PREL CE LTTE SUBJECT: LTTE Update: Tigers reportedly have success in recruiting; Divisions in the LTTE re peace process? Refs: (A) Colombo 1815 - (B) Colombo 1299, and previous (U) Classified by W. Lewis Amselem, Deputy Chief of Mission. Reasons 1.5 (b, d). ¶1. (C) This update of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) activities reviews the following: --------------------------------------------- -- Balasingham said to be "Obsessed" with the U.S. --------------------------------------------- -- ¶8. (C) Despite the lack of direct contact, the LTTE seems to maintain a deep interest in the U.S. Based on his recent meetings with Balasingham at the September peace talks in Thailand, Milinda Moragoda reported that the Tiger spokesman peppered him with questions on where the U.S. stands with regard to the conflict. Moragoda's impression was that Balasingham was "obsessed" on the subject. In one conversation, for example, when Moragoda noted that he was going to the U.S. after the conclusion of the talks, Balasingham sniffed, "What for? To buy arms?" Moragoda said he had jokingly replied that he had done that during his last visit. ¶9. (C) Comment: In comments tending to back up Moragoda's report, we have heard from other contacts that the LTTE is very worried about the stance of the U.S. toward the group. This concern seems to have spiked in the aftermath of September 11 and continued on from that date. At the heart of the LTTE's interest seems to be a nagging fear that the U.S. may one day directly confront the LTTE. Many Sri Lankans, including Moragoda, believe that this concern about the U.S. and its reaction is one of the factors driving the LTTE's continued involvement in the peace process. End Comment. WILLS
