US President Barack Obama on Friday announced his intent to nominate Atul Keshap to the post of Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

Mr Keshap will take over the role previously held by Michelle Sison, who is now the deputy representative of the United States to the UN and the UN Security Council, and the representative of the US at the UN General Assembly.

The president’s nominee currently serves as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs at the Department of State, a position he has held since 2013, according to the White House.

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Global Tamil Forum (GTF) and Australian Tamil Congress (ATC) met with the Australian foreign minister, Julie Bishop and department of foreign affairs and trade officials (DFAT) on Thursday, discussing ongoing Tamil concerns and the ground reality in the North-East.

“Good meeting with Tamil National Alliance MP Mr. Sumanthiran and Tamil Diaspora representatives on recent developments in Sri Lanka and support for reconciliation,” tweeted Ms Bishop following the meeting.

China on Thursday urged Sri Lanka to ensure the legitimate interests of its companies were protected during the Sri Lankan president’s official visit to Beijing.

"China's cooperation with Sri Lanka is based on mutual benefit and a win-win situation, without any political preconditions," China’s president, Xi Jinping was quoted by China’s state news agency, Xinhua, as saying.

He reportedly added that China wished to help Sri Lanka sustain its development.

His comments come amid ongoing uncertainty over Chinese projects in Sri Lanka, in particular, the Colombo Port City project, which the new Sri Lankan government said it would re-examine before allowing it to proceed.

The US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha Biswal said whilst being encouraged by the new Sri Lankan government’s promises of reform, there remained tough challenges, including a difficult road ahead on accountability and reconciliation, as well as demilitarisation of the conflict affected areas.

Ms Biswal, who had visited Sri Lanka last month, made these comments before the US House Foreign Affairs Committee meeting on Tuesday, regarding the ‘US rebalance in South Asia: foreign aid and developmental priorities’.

The Federation of National Organisations (FNO), has warned against the 'separatist' agenda being pushed through the calls for the 13th Amendment.

Gunadasa Amarasekera, whose Patriotic National Movement - an ally of the National Freedom Front - is a member of the FNO, said the 13th Amendment must be "pruned".

"The UNP and the SLFP are using the idea of a national government to push the country to ruin by making way for the Eelam to take over," he said.

Four Indian Navy ships will arrive in Trincomalee for a three-day visit, during which they will take part in training exercises and cultural events, the Indian High Commission in Colombo said.

The ships are part of the First Training Squadron, part of the Indian navy's Southern Naval Command.

The ships, Tir, Kesari, coast guard ship Varuna and training ship Sudarshini will be visiting the port city in Sri Lanka's North-East.