Feb 28 (Kyodo) The city of Yokohama has decided to provide Sri Lanka with nine trucks for the collection of human waste to help improve hygiene conditions in the country, which was hit hard by the Dec. 26 Indian Ocean tsunamis, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said Monday. more..

Feb 28 (Reuters) Sri Lanka's trade deficit for the full-year in 2004 widened by 44 percent as high global oil prices weighed on state finances in a nation which imports all of its crude oil needs, the Central Bank said on Monday. more..

Feb 28 (AT) The New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) has bluntly rejected the LTTE claim that it has stopped recruiting child soldiers. "The LTT denials are not credible," Jo Becker of HRW said last week. She said that Secretary-General Kofi Annan's report on LTTE recruitment is based on "detailed monitoring" by the UNICEF. more..

Feb 28 (NN) Sri Lanka has endorsed Afghanistan's bid to join seven-member regional grouping, SAARC, but expressed its reservations over Iran's desire to become member of the South Asian regional grouping, reports said. more..

Feb 28 (FT) Lakshman Kadirgamar, Sri Lanka's foreign minister, insisted the country's ruling coalition remained stable despite the withdrawal of an ethnic Tamil party that has left the government short of a full majority. more..

Feb 28 (LBO) When Sri Lankan inflation soared to double digits last year, the country's central bank waited for months before tightening policy, leading observers to wonder if it has abandoned its commitment to keep prices low. more..

Feb 28 (DN) A majority of the masses in Sri Lanka entertain a reasonable doubt as to whether the Norwegian Peace Envoys and the Cease Fire Monitoring Mission are partial towards the LTTE, when they observe silence in the face of serious breaches of the Cease Fire Agreement by the LTTE more..

Feb 28 (AP) Britain's Prince Charles told tsunami survivors in Sri Lanka he was saddened by their loss and the United Nations got ready to report on the region's progress in recovering from the disaster. more..

Feb 28 (AFP) Prince Charles toured Sri Lanka's tsunami-hit eastern district of Batticaloa where, according to officials, he had been "moved" on seeing the devastation and speaking with fishermen who survived the thundering waves. more..

Feb 28 (Yahoo) Britain's Prince Charles receives a pottu on his forehead from a child as he visits the tsunami-hit area of Batticaloa in eastern Sri Lanka February 28, 2005. more..

Feb 28 (AP) The Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger rebels are close to signing an agreement to ensure that foreign aid reaches guerrilla-held areas of the island that were ravaged by the Dec. 26 tsunami, Norway's top peace envoy said Monday. more..