by Kalinga Weerakkody

"We have only one President, one Prime Minister, one State and one nation," Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapakse said expressing his views on the interview given by LTTE leader V. Prabhakaran.

He further said, "Our co-operation would be for a solution within the framework of a unitary state". We are opposed to any solution which divided the country and no fragmentation of the country would be allowed," he stressed.

He said the effort by the government to reach a negotiated settlement should be pursued but the government should be on the alert as the LTTE holds a bad record. Rajapakse claimed that Prabhakaran and LTTE which had claimed thousands of lives and brought misery, came out in open on Wednesday to tell that they have yet not dropped the demand for Eelam.