COLOMBO, Jan 17 (AFP) - The US Monday pulled back two military supply ships deployed for tsunami-relief operations in Sri Lanka even as Canada vowed a long-term commitment of its troops to help the island get back on its feet.
Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said the United States would maintain the 700-strong marine force to help with the tsunami clean-up, but the supply ships were moving to neighbouring Maldives which was also devastated.
Sri Lankan officials said about a dozen other countries which had also sent military units to help with the relief operations were set to scale down their operations in the coming weeks.
India, meanwhile, brought in fresh supplies of clothing, cooking utensils, school books, colour pencils, books and school bags on the request of Sri Lankan authorities.
India's top envoy here, Nirupama Rao, said New Delhi was scaling down some of its military medical personnel as there was less need for them, but personnel deployed for clean-up operations will remain.
Wolfowitz, who was on a brief visit to the island, said US troops would not stay longer than needed.
"We don't want to stay any longer than we are wanted," he said after inspecting operations by US marines at the southern town of Galle, 112 kilometres (72 miles) south of here."
"Most certainly not longer than we are needed."
He said the marines were deployed because they had the capability to respond quickly to the December 26 disaster that killed some 30,920 people by official count.
The scale of the catastrophe was much larger in Indonesia, and Sri Lanka had less need for helicopters because most affected areas could now be accessed by road, he said.
Sri Lankan officials meanwhile gave conflicting figures for the tsunami fatalities.
The public security ministry said 38,195 people were killed, a figure disputed by the relief coordinating centre run under President Chandrika Kumaratunga office which placed the figure at 30,920.
Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin left Sri Lanka after travelling to the eastern district of Ampara, which had the highest official death toll of 10,436 killed, and promised long-term aid.
"You have to be a stone not to be moved by this," Martin said after walking through the remains of flattened beachside houses in the town of Kalmunai.
He attended a brief memorial service at a mass grave for tsunami victims which locals said contained around 1,500 bodies.
"We will stay here as long as we are wanted," he said after inspecting relief operations by some 200 Canadian military personnel. "We will be here for a long time to come."
Martin said he was also meeting with Tamil legislators regarded as proxies of Tamil Tiger guerrillas to ensure foreign aid was being distributed fairly and went to the people who needed it.
Wolfowitz and Martin at separate media briefings declined to speculate if the disaster would help the peace process in Sri Lanka, where government forces and Tamil Tigers had been fighting for decades.
Wolfowitz said it was a "good sign" that the Tigers and the government were cooperating in the relief operations while Martin said they were focused on ensuring the aid effort went smoothly.
Martin arrived late Sunday for a tour of the devastated regions after announcing at his previous stop, Thailand, that he wanted to find out about alleged child recruitment by Tiger guerrillas.
"I will also raise the question of rumours of child recruitment (by the Tigers) and want to pass on a message unequivocally that it is not acceptable to Canada," he said here.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam have been fighting for an independent Tamil homeland since 1972. The conflict claimed some 60,000 lives before the two sides signed a truce in February 2002.
However, the Norwegian-brokered peace process came to a halt in April 2003 when talks broke down.
Control over tsunami aid has heightened tensions between the two sides although in several areas the two sides were reportedly cooperating in the relief effort, especially in the island's east.
01/17/2005 15:16 GMT - AFP