The United States had threatened Sri Lanka in 2009 with costly sanctions
if weapons deals were carried out with both Iran and North Korea during
the final stage of the war, a secret US cable revealed.
Oslo newspaper Aftenposten, which continues to churn out stories related
to the content of more than 250,000 diplomatic cables that the US had
intended to keep secret, stated that “any arms purchase contracts
entered into by Sri Lankan entities with North Korea or Iran, if
implemented, could trigger sanctions against the entities involved under
the Iran, North Korea, and Syria Nonproliferation Act (INKSNA).”
The Cable dated 08/05/2009 also stated that “Recent intelligence reports
indicate that a Sri Lankan company responsible for the acquisition of
equipment and services for the Sri Lankan military is negotiating the
purchase of RPG-7 Rocket Propelled Grenade Launchers (RPGs) and Multiple
Rocket Launchers (MRLs) from North Korea´s primary weapons trading
firm.”
Any purchases would have been in violation of UN resolutions against trade with either country, it said.
Sri Lankan officials denied they were in the process of illegal weapon
purchases, but the US ambassador in Colombo wasn’t convinced. There was
no comment on any deals with North Korea.
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