By Saman Indrajith in The Island, Aug 11, 2023Foreign Minister Ali Sabry told Parliament yesterday that his ministry had received no information about CIA Chief William J. Burns’ alleged visit to Sri Lanka on Feb 14. Making a ministerial statement in response to a series of questions raised by SLPP dissident MP Ven. Aturaliye Ratana Thera on June 22, the minister said that his ministry only provided necessary diplomatic clearances for the aircraft to fly…
Posts tagged as “Sri Lanka”
by Kelum Bandara in Daily Mirror, August 11, 2023Sri Lanka finally allowed a Chinese warship to make a port of call in Colombo for replenishment yesterday despite India’s initial resistance, Daily Mirror learns. The navy said the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy warship HAI YANG 24 HAO arrived at the port of Colombo on a formal visit yesterday. “The 129 metre-long ship which arrived in Colombo is manned by a crew of 138 and it…
report in The Island, Aug 1, 2023Japan has sought Sri Lanka’s backing for its Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) strategy. Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa has taken up this issue with his Sri Lankan counterpart Ali Sabry, PC, when they met on 29th July. According to a statement issued by the Japanese Embassy, in Colombo, Minister Yoshimasa has also briefed Minister Sabry regarding Russia terminating an international agreement that allowed grain exports from Ukraine through…
by Kishaki Pinto Jayawardene in The Sunday Times, July 30, 2023The ‘arrest’ of a young journalist, Tharindu Uduwaragedera recorded by onlookers this Friday being forcibly dragged out of a three wheeler, grabbed by his hair and roughly manhandled by a posse of police officers before being whisked away in a police vehicle, is a chilling warning to Sri Lanka’s dissenters. Savages in uniform violating the law The question here is not whether one agrees with…
by Kelum Bandara in Daily Mirror, 22 July 2023 Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said land connectivity between India and Sri Lanka was proposed by Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe. The President came up with the same proposal for the construction of a bridge between the two countries when he was the Prime Minister between 2002 and 2004. Making his remarks at a press conference in New Delhi, the Indian Foreign Secretary said that…
AFP report , July 19, 2023COLOMBO: Sri Lanka´s president arrives in India on Thursday for his first visit to the regional powerhouse, with concerns mounting in New Delhi over China´s increasing influence in the strategically placed but financially bankrupt island. New Sri Lankan leaders usually travel to India within a few weeks of taking office, but Ranil Wickremesinghe´s trip comes exactly a year after he became president following the toppling of his predecessor at the…
report in Economy Next.com, July 10, 2023 at 4:22 pmThe ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) has decided to support President Ranil Wickremesinghe over the next two years, an SLPP senior said amid speculation that there is division within the party over continued support for the president. SLPP legislator Mahindananda Aluthgamage told reporters on Sunday July 09 that President Wickremesinghe has so far not said anything about dissolving parliament to call an election. “As a…
report in The Island, July 7, 2023Fitch Ratings on Wednesday downgraded Sri Lanka’s Long-Term Local-Currency (LTLC) Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to ‘C’ from ‘CC’.It said the issue ratings on local-currency bonds had also been downgraded to ‘C’ from ‘CC’. Fitch also affirmed the Long-Term Foreign-Currency (LTFC) IDR at ‘RD’ (Restricted Default) and the Country Ceiling at ‘B-‘.Fitch said that the downgrade of Sri Lanka’s LTLC IDR reflects its view that a sovereign local-currency debt restructuring…
By Prof. Amarasiri de Silva in The Island, June 29, 2023When US President Joe Biden rolled out the red carpet on the South Lawn of the White House for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday morning, their meeting held a significant purpose. At the forefront of their agenda was the aim to forge a formidable alliance between the two nations, centered around promoting the freedom of business and naval activities in the Asia Pacific…
by Ruwani Fonseka in The Morning, June 29, 2023Air Vice Marshal Udeni Rajapaksa will take over as the 19th Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force with effect from Friday (30). This was made known by the Sri Lankan Air Force today. Vice Marshal Rajapaksa has served in the Air Force since 1990 and was previously the Air Force Chief of Staff.https://www.themorning.lk/articles/SFQ5QyBjuS1iJfruFnZH New Sri Lanka Air Force Commander to be appointedreport on adaderana.lk, June 28,…
AFP report, June 27, 2023COLOMBO: Bankrupt Sri Lanka’s government on Monday said it was scrapping plans to export around 100,000 endangered monkeys to China following an outcry and a court case by animal lovers. The toque macaque is endemic to Sri Lanka and common on the island of 22 million people but is classed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list. Agriculture minister Mahinda Amaraweera said in June that…