July 03, Colombo: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that it is awaiting for approval of its Executive Board on the payment of a stand by loan to Sri Lanka.

"But discussions are continuing, and the finalization of the program, as with any other program, would of course depend on the Executive Board," Caroline Atkinson, Director of External Relations of IMF told reporters in Washington.

"We don't have a date for an Executive Board meeting at present on Sri Lanka," she added.

Last week, Sri Lanka accused IMF of politicizing the issue, following months of delay in processing the loan.

Sri Lanka has requested a 1.9 billion dollar loan from the IMF to meet the demands set forth by the post-war reconstruction needs and the global financial melt down.

The United States, IMF's most influential member, is applying pressure against granting the loan on the grounds of Sri Lanka's alleged human right violations during the final offensive.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton blocked the loan in May saying that it "is not an appropriate time to consider the IMF loan until there is a resolution of the conflict" in Sri Lanka.