Under Secretary of State R. Nicholas Burns to Host a Meeting of the Co-Chair Tokyo Donor Conference on Sri Lanka

Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs R. Nicholas Burns will host a meeting of the Co-Chairs of the Tokyo Donor Conference meeting on Sri Lanka (the United States, European Union, Norway, and Japan) on November 21, 2006 at the Department of State. He will be joined by Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard Boucher, European Commission Director General for External Relations Herve Jouanjean, Norwegian Minister of International Development, Erik Solheim, and Japanese Special Envoy Yasushi Akashi.
Co-Chair representatives from the U.S., Norway, Japan, and the EU will discuss the current situation in Sri Lanka and strategies that the international community can pursue to encourage the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam to return to negotiations. The Co-Chairs are the sole international mechanism focused on the peace process in Sri Lanka and meet on a regular basis. Their last meeting was held in Brussels on September 12.
Following the meeting, the members will hold a press conference at approximately 2:30 p.m. in the Loy Henderson Conference Room.

This press conference is open for all press.

Pre-set time for Cameras: 1:15 p.m. from 23rd Street entrance
Final Access for all press: 2:10 p.m. from the 23rd Street entrance

Press Contact: Jennifer Viau, 202-647-8124 or Paul Neville, 202-647-7067, Bureau for South and Central Asian Affairs

Media representatives may attend this briefing upon presentation of one of the following: (1) a U.S. Government-issued identification card (Department of State, White House, Congress, Department of Defense, or Foreign Press Center), (2) a media-issued photo identification card, or (3) a letter from their employer on letterhead verifying their employment as a journalist, accompanied by an official photo identification (driver's license or passport).