Sri Lanka's government and separatist Tamil Tiger rebels have agreed in principle to end hostilities permanently.
The move will prepare the ground for peace talks to end a protracted civil war.
A formal and long-lasting ceasefire agreement between the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam could be signed within two days, a government spokesman told reporters.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's government gave its consent to a document prepared by Norway after a Cabinet meeting, a senior government official said.
The official, close to the Cabinet, said that details of the plan are expected to be made public Friday or Saturday.
Norway has already obtained the rebels' approval of the cease-fire plan, the official said.
The swift political developments eclipsed a clash in the island nation's northeastern waters that left three sailors dead. The maritime battle was the first major violation of a temporary cease-fire brokered by Norway as part of a wider peace effort.
In another incident, five members of a Tamil militia, which now sides with the government, were shot and killed in the northern town of Vavuniya on Thursday.
No one claimed responsibility for the killings, but Tamil Tiger rebels are known to have targeted militia members in the past.
The rebels have been fighting to divide the island nation along ethnic lines, saying the Tamil minority can only prosper independent of the domination of the Sinhalese, who make-up 14 million of the country's 18.6 million people.
AP