Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, undertaking the first ever foreign ministerial visit to Brazil on the invitation of his counterpart, held bilateral talks with the Minister of External Relations of Brazil Celso Amorim, and signed the Framework Agreement on Technical Cooperation, which aims at fostering close cooperation in areas such as agriculture, livestock and energy.

The Seva Vanitha Unit of the Foreign Ministry has presented medical equipment to the new Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Nikaweratiya Base Hospital, upon a request of the Ministry of Health. Additional Secretary of the Ministry, Jayantha Palipane on behalf of the President of the Seva Vanitha Unit of the Foreign Ministry Deepthi Bogollagama, handed over the equipment to the Provincial Director of Health of the North Western Province, Dr. A.K.S.B. de Alwis and the Acting District Medical Officer, Dr. A.D.P.M.D. Athukorale, last Saturday (13th September 2008) at the hospital.

The donation of this urgently required medical equipment was made possible by Dr. Thomas H.C. Cheung, Honorary Consul for Sri Lanka in Hong Kong and flown to Sri Lanka by the courtesy of SriLankan Airlines.

By C. Bryson Hull

COLOMBO, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers will go underground rather than "fight to the last man" once a northern offensive that has cut their strength to 3,000 fighters from 12,000 nears its end, Sri Lanka's army chief said on Thursday.

Lieutenant-General Sarath Fonseka also said he had no clear timeframe for retaking territory held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), because his aim was killing all of the insurgents rather than seizing ground.

"We don't want to end up in a situation like in Iraq when you're moving fast, but you left behind a whole army who will resort to guerrilla tactics," Fonseka told Reuters in an interview at Army Headquarters in the capital Colombo.

"Therefore I don't give a timeframe," said the 38-year-veteran who was appointed army commander in 2005. The military in the last three months has stepped up an 18-month-old drive to wipe out the Tamil Tigers -- regarded as one of the world's most resilient guerrilla groups -- and end a war that has killed 70,000 since exploding in 1983. The Tigers want to establish a separate homeland for Sri Lanka's ethnic minority Tamils, in a nation that has been ruled by majority Sinhala-led government since independence from Britain in 1948.

Information and Media Minister and Cabinet spokesman Anura Priyadharshana Yapa yesterday assured that the Government has not left any room to create a shortage of food stuffs and medicine to the civilians in Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi areas. The Government on the request made by the District Secretaries is continuing the supply of food items and medicine to the civilians in these two districts without any hindrance.

As the Government mechanism is operating in these two districts, the Government is always committed to release sufficient food stocks to cater to the civilian needs, the Minister told the weekly Cabinet press briefing yesterday. "We are happy to note that some political parties have also endorsed the Government's attempts made to release the required amount of foodstuffs to the civilians in Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi areas."