A Sri Lankan government minister stated that no one has “the right to tell how many soldiers should be kept in the north or in the east,” in a defiant address to parliament this week.

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena said that he would “not leave any room to weaken the military” as he pledged to ensure security across the island remained at full strength.

Speaking to Parliament yesterday, Mr Sirisena was quoted by Colombo Gazette as stating that “there will not be any compromise on National security”.

He went on to note that whilst international relations were important, his government would need to be prepared to face “any international threat”.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's 'apology' for the destruction of the Jaffna Library in 1982 has been criticised, after it was initially praised by many as a step towards reconciliation.

Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, Mr Wickremesinghe said in Sinhala: "“The public library in Jaffna was burnt during a United National Party (UNP) Government in 1981. We know it was wrong and tender an apology for it,” he said.

“You too should tender an apology for the wrong things which your Government did," he said to the joint opposition.

The United Nations Committee Against Torture released a report on Wednesday expressing serious concern over the use of “routine torture” by Sri Lankan security forces and called for an independent body to investigate the practise.

The Committee panel of 10 independent experts said it “remains seriously concerned over consistent reports” of torture on the island.

Committee member Felice Gaer told Reuters that "We wanted to make it clear that the present is a problem as well (as the past)".

Sri Lanka’s defence secretary said that land releases in the North-East are not taking place due to pressure from the international community, but that the decision was being made by the military.

The Deputy Spokesperson for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the global body’s “priorities for Sri Lanka have not changed” despite an upcoming change in office. 

Ban Ki-moon is due to step down from the post at the end of this year, with António Guterres set to take over from 1 January 2017.

His Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq told The Sunday Leader that despite the upcoming change, the UN’s policy towards Sri Lanka would not dramatically shift.

“I can’t really say what a new person may or may not do. But our priorities for Sri Lanka have not changed,” he said.

The  Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) party on Monday urged the Sri Lankan government to ban the main Tamil party, the Tamil National Alliance, arguing such a move was needed due to the party's links to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).