US embassy cable - 03COLOMBO1644

UNCLAS COLOMBO 001644 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
TOPEC 
 
PLEASE PASS TO PEACE CORPS FOR DIRECTOR GADDI VASQUEZ 
FROM THE AMBASSADOR 
 
E.O.  12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PREL, CE 
SUBJECT:  PEACE CORPS VISIT TO SRI LANKA 
 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED -- PROTECT ACCORDINGLY. 
 
1. 
 
(SBU)  I was delighted when we met in July that you were 
enthusiastic about a possible Peace Corps return to Sri 
Lanka. After arriving here and getting a sense of the on- 
the-ground situation, I was even more excited about the 
possibilities for Peace Corps.  This country has an 
historic opportunity in front of it -- the chance to put 
behind 20 years of ruinous civil strife and build a 
democratic prosperous nation for all Sri Lankans.  Many 
of the areas which Sri Lankans identify as crucial in 
their plans for the future--such as upgrading the 
country's English language capabilities--are areas where 
Peace Corps has great strengths. 
 
2. (SBU)   Your assessment team has just left and I 
wanted to let you know how pleased I was with the 
outcome of their two-week visit.  The team, after 
meetings in Colombo and extensive travel around the 
country, told me that they intend to recommend to you 
that Peace Corps reopen in Sri Lanka.  This is indeed 
good news.  I fully understand that there are budget and 
programming issues to be considered and that a reopening 
is not a sure thing.  I want you to know, however, that 
my staff and I are committed to working closely with 
Peace Corps in the coming next months as the concept of 
a Peace Corps reopening hopefully moves from idea to 
reality. 
 
3.  (SBU) We were all very impressed with the 
professionalism and enthusiasm of Robert Reid and his 
team.  This reflects well on Peace Corps and only 
increased our delight at the prospect of welcoming Peace 
Corps to the country team here. 
 
4.  (U) Best regards. 
 
LUNSTEAD