INDIA’S UNWARRANTED INTERVENTION IN AN ISLAND’S ETHNIC QUESTION: THE ROLE OF THE LIBERATION TIGERS OF TAMIL EELAM IN INDO-SRI LANKA RELATIONS

Hasini M. Lecamwasam

Abstract


The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was a terrorist organization that ravaged the island nation of Sri Lanka for three decades. In their quest for a separate state for Tamils within Sri Lanka, the LTTE received much help from India. Why did the subcontinent aid a rising terrorist organization to wage war against an immediate neighbor and a longtime ally? Indo-Lanka relations regarding the LTTE have developed along bitter lines defined by a curious mixture of friendship, misunderstandings, unanswered questions and unasked questions. This paper evaluates the shifts and dynamics of Indo-Lanka relations shaped by the LTTE factor, the play of international actors in this major exchange, and the implications of these developments for South Asia.


Keywords


India, Sri Lanka, LTTE, Intervention

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References


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