Sri Lanka's new army commander, Lieutenant General Crishantha De Silva, reiterated that no troops or military camps would be withdrawn from the Tamil area in the North.
According to Colombo Page, in an interview with a Sinhala language newspaper this week, Lieutenant General Silva "stressed that safeguarding territorial sovereignty was of paramount importance and assured to take all measures to prevent the resurgence of militancy in the North."
"We will do our best to prevent any threats being posed to our national security and challenge our territorial integrity. The Army is maintained by public funds and is duty-bound to protect the people and the country," Lieutenant General Silva was quoted as saying.
Colombo Page further quoted him as saying: "no military camps have been withdrawn to release land to the original owners in the North and East [and] neither troops nor camps will be withdrawn from the North."
"Private lands adjacent to various Army camps have been released from time to time, after the war ended in May 2009."
"The reason for the maintenance of troops is to ensure national security. The military hardware, troops and weaponry will be secured and maintained according to the requirements of the country," he reportedly added.
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