By Shamindra Ferdinando
Despite opposition calls to cancel or at least delay her official European tour in view of the debate on the budget scheduled to begin on Monday, President Chandrika Kumaratunga left the country in the early hours of yesterday.

The president who also holds the finance portfolio did not present the budget like she did in the previous year. The budget was presented by Deputy Minister G. L. Peiris who flew out of the country on the next day. An aide to Minister Peiris said that the Minister is in Teheran and will return in time for the debate on the budget.

Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayake too would be out of the island for about 48 hours, an aide to the premier said. The Prime Minister will be flying to Islamabad today to meet with the Chief Executive General Pervaz Mushaaraff, he said adding that the talks will cover bi-lateral relations, SAARC and the efforts to save Bamiyan Buddha statues.

The official said that the premier would be joining Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar already in Islamabad. The premier was expected to return for the debate.

The president would be visiting at least four countries including Germany, Belgium and Netherlands, officials said. They stressed that the tour could not be cancelled or put off as all arrangements have been finalised. A presidential aide said that the UNP and the JVP will protest about anything and everything. He recalled the UNP was against the president’s recent visit to New Delhi where she held talks with the top Indian leadership including the premier Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Government officials declined to give details but said that the President was expected to sign the European Commission - Sri Lanka MOU on market access in the textile sector during her visit to Brussels, they said. She was also expected to meet with the top EU leaders.

The president would press for other EU nations where the LTTE was active to follow the British example and ban the group’s activities. Talks will cover whole gamut of Sri Lanka - EU relations, officials said stressing that the ongoing efforts to bring the LTTE back to the negotiating table, proposed constitutional reforms including the electoral reforms would be on the agenda.

The talks would be a continuation of the discussions that took place in Colombo last month between the European Commission and Sri Lankan delegations led by Jonathan Scheele, the acting director for the Asia-EC and Dr. P. B. Jayasundara, Treasury Secretary. Apart from Scheele’s mission, the delegation for Relations with South Asia and SAARC of the European Parliament was here for six days.

The president who visited New Delhi for two-days of talks with the Indian leaders two weeks ago, was expected to briefly visit London on her way home. She was expected to be away for nearly three weeks, the sources said.

Minister Kadirgamar was expected to join the President on her EU tour. Kadirgamar who will accompany Prime Minister Wickramanayake for talks with Pakistan’s Chief Executive today was expected to join the presidential delegation. Movements of both President Kumaratunga and Minister Kadirgamar are kept secret in view of the threat to their lives posed by the LTTE.