Sri Lanka looks to mend ties with US

The newly elected Sri Lankan government on Monday said it is keen to work more closely with the United States on various issues.

Sri Lanka's newly appointed External Affairs Minister, Mangala Samaraweera, made the remarks after meeting with visiting U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha Biswal, who is currently on a two-day visit in Sri Lanka.

Samaraweera also said that he will be traveling to Washington next week for talks with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and also extend an official invitation for Kerry to visit the island.

Biswal told reporters after her meeting with Samaraweera in Colombo that Kerry is looking forward to his meeting with Samaraweera and is ready to assist Sri Lanka in addressing human rights issues and good governance.

A major diplomatic rift has emerged between the United States and Sri Lanka during the previous government, headed by Mahinda Rajapakse, over the island nation's human rights record.

The United States last year sponsored a resolution against Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. The resolution mandated a UN-led investigation on the war in Sri Lanka and a report on the investigation is scheduled to be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council in March this year.

The dispute focused on possible war crimes that occurred during the final phase of Sri Lanka's bloody civil war against the Tamil Tiger rebels, with the United States pressing for an independent probe into the alleged wartime atrocities. The previous government had denied any wrongdoing and had rejected calls for an international inquiry.

The new Sri Lankan government led by President Maithripala Sirisena, which came to power following the Jan. 8 presidential elections, is looking at mending ties with the United States by launching a fresh domestic investigation into the war which meets international expectations.

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