Sri Lankan Peace Threatened by Violence, Solheim Says

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Sri Lankan Peace Threatened by Violence, Solheim Says

Jan. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Sri Lanka's peace process is being threatened by a ``climate of fear'' created by an upsurge in violence between the army and Tamil Tiger rebels, Norway's peace envoy Erik Solheim said.

``This is not the last chance to improve events but it is very difficult to press forward in a climate of fear,'' Solheim said yesterday in Colombo. ``Everyone is worried of the deteriorating security situation and they are disturbed by the high number of killings. The key is to put a stop to this.''

Solheim's visit is aimed at supporting a cease-fire between the government and the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam that has been in force since 2002. U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns is also visiting Sri Lanka to boost the truce.

Sri Lanka's progress on reaching a settlement to end two decades of civil war is a condition that donor countries, including the U.S. and Norway, made for providing $4.5 billion in aid to the South Asian island nation. The country's $20 billion economy has expanded every quarter since the cease-fire agreement was signed.

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