The former Prime Minister of Australia Tony Abbott called Mahinda Rajapaksa’s decisions in the final stages of the armed conflict “tough but probably unavoidable,” in an essay published in Quadrant this week, defending his government’s close relations with Sri Lanka.

“Personal contact isn’t everything—it won’t change a nation’s fundamental interests—but it can make a big difference where interests might align,” said Mr Abbott. “Mostly, though, articulating a significant but often unacknowledged truth turned out to be a good diplomatic ice-breaker.”

He then went on to state,

“I’m sure that the Sri Lankan president was pleased that Australia didn’t join the human rights lobby against the tough but probably unavoidable actions taken to end one of the world’s most vicious civil wars”.

The United States “will support the vision of the Sri Lankan people” and work towards a free democracy on the island, said US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Atul Keshap on Monday.

Speaking at a reception aboard the US Navy's 7th fleet flag ship "Blue Ridge", which is docked in Colombo this week, Mr Keshap said he was “thrilled” at the visit and hoped “this will be the first of many to come”.

The ambassador tweeted photos of himself at the event alongside Dayan Jayatilleka, a former Sri Lankan diplomat who has denied reports of war crimes and supported former president Mahinda Rajapaksa following his removal from office last year.

The US Navy's 7th fleet flag ship "Blue Ridge" docked in Colombo on Saturday, as part of a visit designed to strengthen relations with Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan navy troops saluted the US ship as it pulled in to port, with the Chief of Staff of the US Navy's 7th fleet Vice Admiral Aucoin visiting the Commander of the Sri Lankan Navy Vice Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne at the Naval Headquarters.

Staff Sergeant Christopher Buch, Fleet Antiterrorism Security Team Pacific (FASTPAC) Operations Chief, said the visit was “a great opportunity for our Marines to work with and interact with the Sri Lankan Marines.”

“It's going to allow us to demonstrate and share some of our tactics,” he said.

The EU has criticised the latest editorial by one of Sri Lanka's largest English-language papers, the Sunday Times, accusing it of trying to exploit the terrorist attacks in Brussels for "nationalist raging".

In a tweet, the EU delegation to Sri Lanka and the Maldives said it was "very disappointed", after the publication of the editorial, which accused western powers of double standards and duplicity on terrorism.

The editorial by the paper, which is seen as close to the ruling UNP, linked the ISIS attacks to the EU's suspension of GSP+ trade tariffs over Sri Lanka's human rights record, and the ban on fisheries imports.

"There was a time when Sri Lankan Intelligence had a thing or two to learn from the West. It is now time, for the West to swallow their pride and learn a trick or two from here," the editorial said.

The European Union's Charge d'Affaires to Sri Lanka Paul Godfrey said in an interview that those who violated codes of good conduct must be held accountable.

Mr Godfrey, speaking to the Sunday Observer said Sri Lanka still had a long way to go on human rights and reconciliation, although excellent progress had been made.

He stressed that those who committed crimes must be held accountable.

"What we need to combat terrorism is to stand up for fundamental values, such as democracy, human rights and the rule of law. This means people who err most, whether they are involved in fights against terrorism or not, need to be held accountable for these actions, that strengthen our overall message against terrorism and shows a clear distinction between those who are terrorists and those in law enforcement.

Former president Chandrika Kumaratunga said the causes behind the war and what happened during the war need to be discussed to move forward on reconciliation.

Ms Kumaratunga, who heads the Office of National Unity and Reconciliation, was speaking at an event organised by the CPA to mark the International Right to Truth Day.

“The truth is essential for coping with loss and the pain that accompanies such loss. Some political elements try to prevent the people from learning the truth, especially with regard to the Tamil people during the conflict and the end of the war. They try to create division in the society,” she said.

“We have to discuss all of this and accept the right of all these people to know the truth. Discussing the issues is essential to coming to terms with what happened. The new regime has accepted this and has put various mechanisms into places to seek the truth.”

Ms Kumaratunga remains a controversial figure amongst Tamils due to atrocities committed by state forces while she was in power. See more below.

The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) said on Friday that the slow progress on the corruption and fraud investigations involving those connected to the previous government begs the question whether the Sirisena-led government had made political deals with those alleged to have committedthose crimes.