Colombo: Asserting that India had a crucial role to play in the success of Sri Lankan peace talks, Norway has said New Delhi's warning that the dialogue would be a long haul is proving true.

"I remember Mr Jaswant Singh (the then External Affairs Minister) telling us that if we don't have patience – to take a plane and return to Norway," Norwegian special Envoy Erik Solheim said, commenting on the current impasse in the dialogue between Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the hectic diplomatic moves to restart the process.

"We are confident that we can overcome the present problems," Solheim said, adding however, that the process may be drawn out and could take "years" to resolve.

Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister Vidar Helgesen and Japan's special peace Envoy to Sri Lanka Yashushi Akashi, as well as two Sri Lankan negotiators, Milinda Moragoda and Bernard Goonetilleke were in Delhi at the weekend.

The three parties being in Delhi at the same time was a "pure coincidence", Solheim said at a dinner meeting with the Foreign Correspondents' Association (FCA) of Sri Lanka, but asserted that India's role was crucial to the Norwegian-backed bid to end three decades of ethnic bloodshed in the island.

"India is very supportive of the peace process and they are doing a lot to help the process along," Solheim said.

The peace process hit its biggest crisis when the Tamil Tigers announced on April 21 that they were suspending their participation in talks and were also boycotting the June 9 and 10 meeting organised by Japan to drum up international financial support to rebuild Sri Lanka.

PTI