The last truce, unlike the previous ones which had lasted only a year or so, dragged on despite serious violations thereof by the LTTE terrorists for about five years. Its extraordinary life span was due to three factors: The post 9/11 anti-terror drive by the leading western nations and the attendant apprehension on the part of all terrorists groups the world over, the 2004 tsunami disaster, which had a heavy toll on the LTTE terrorists and, most of all, the benefits that accrued to the outfit from CFA such as some legitimacy for its macabre cause through peace talks held in foreign capitals, freedom of movement and opportunity for arms smuggling and infiltration.
The LTTE terrorists would still have been benefiting from its wish-granting CFA, while violating it with impunity, having scuttled peace talks in 2003 under the UNF government, unless the present regime had abrogated it officially last year after the LTTE terrorists plunged the country back into war in 2006 by capturing the Mavil Aru reservoir.
Until 2006, the war had been fought according to the LTTE terrorist's time table.When it wanted war, governments responded militarily and when it sued for peace, governments naively reciprocated its peace offers.
Thus, it was able to bring about a discontinuity in State military policy under successive governments. In 1989, the LTTE terrorists managed to make the Premadasa regime depart from JRJ government's and India's military campaign.
