The Sri Lankan government would endeavor to make the full use of the Geneva talks with the Tamil Tiger rebels, the head of the government peace delegation said Monday.

Nimal Siripala De Silva, the minister of health who leads the government team at the Geneva talks, said prior to his departure here, "We are hoping to make the best use of the opportunity in order to try and achieve lasting peace in the country."

He and his team comprising three more cabinet ministers departed for Geneva, where the talks would be held on Feb. 22-23 with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels.

The talks aimed at strengthening the Norwegian-backed cease- fire will be the first direct talks between the two sides since March 2003.

De Silva said the talks would be approached with an open mind in keeping with the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse's thinking.

The LTTE, who approaches the talks with a view to getting the government consent to fully comply with the February 2002 accord, needs dismantling of the paramilitary groups who they say are operating in the North and East provinces with the blessings of the government troops.

The government accuses the LTTE of carrying out murders violating the cease-fire and wants the LTTE to stop resorting to violence.

Although the talks would be limited to the truce, the government hopes that the talks would lead the way to direct negotiations toward the ultimate settlement of the drawn out separatist armed conflict that has claimed over 64,000 lives since the 1980s.

Source: Xinhua