Senior U.S. diplomat Richard Verma on Friday met Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Foreign Minister Ali Sabry in Colombo, and discussed Sri Lanka s economic recovery and progress on its IMF program, the U.S. State Department said.

As Pakistan grapples with the aftermath of controversial elections, political chaos is threatening to cloud its $3bn deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which analysts say is key to the country’s economic stability. On Thursday, the global lender said Pakistan’s interim government had “maintained” economic stability. The IMF’s communications chief, Julie Kozack, said the […]

India s Ministry of External Affairs has issued an emergency travel document for Santhan, one of the freed convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, facilitating his immediate deportation to Sri Lanka, foreign media reported.

Deputy Secretary of State of the United States of America Richard Verma visited Sri Lanka from last Thursday to yesterday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a press release. The visiting U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and delegation had extensive discussions with Foreign Minister Ali Sabry at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on further […]

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Tharaka Balasuriya spoke to WION’s diplomatic correspondent Sidhant Sibal on the sidelines of Raisina Dialogue 2024 in New Delhi.Balasuriya weighed in on several issues ranging from the India-Lanka relationship, Colombo’s ties with China, tourism, Unified Payments Interface (UPI), and more. While speaking on China, Balasuriya said that “both countries [&...

Fifteen more Sri Lankans are on their way to a location known as the Cyber Criminal Area (CCA) in Myanmar, some of those already trapped there told media institutions on Friday. Reaching out to Sri Lankan media institutions, they said one person already arrived there on Thursday and three more are to arrive on Friday […]

By Rathindra Kuruwita Until Sri Lanka has access to international money markets, which will allow it to ensure there are no short-term dollar shortages, relaxing the restrictions on vehicle imports is out of the question, Professor in Economics at the Department of Economics at Colombo University, Dr. Priyanga Dunusinghe, said. Even then, relaxing vehicle imports […]

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in coordination with the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Myanmar continues to make every effort to rescue and repatriate the Sri Lankan nationals who have become victims of human trafficking and are trapped in Myanmar, the ministry said in a statement.

Tharaka Balasuriya, Sri Lanka s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, spoke to WION s diplomatic correspondent Sidhant Sibal on the sidelines of Raisina Dialogue 2024 in New Delhi.

The Committee on Public Finance (COPF) told officials from the Ministry of Finance that the state was suffering a substantial revenue loss due to a delay in imposing VAT on foreign digital and software providers. COPF Chairman Harsha de Silva, MP, said that had also created an unequal playing field for domestic digital and software […]

Accelerated lending sees loan book grow by Rs 56.8 billion in 3 months Deposits surge by Rs 109.4 billion in final quarter 12-month gross income up 21.82% to Rs 341.6 billion The Commercial Bank of Ceylon Group lent Rs 56.816 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023 at a monthly average of Rs 18.939 billion […]

Across South Asia, an ominous great game is unfolding. China is battling for regional influence, with smaller buffer states caught in the middle as pawns. Far from peaceful rise, China’s tactics reveal a belligerent dragon pulling neighbors ever tighter into its orbit through debt-trap diplomacy, data colonialism and brazen political interference – a 21st century […]

Following Iranian FM’s visit The Foreign Ministry said yesterday that Iranian Foreign Minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, during high level meetings in Colombo this week, expressed hope that with this trip, the bilateral ties in all fields, including political, economic, commercial, and tourism, would be expanded. Amirabdollahian was here at the official invitation of the Sri Lankan […]

Nothing could be more vital at present in the conflict and war zones of the world than positive mindset changes and the wish of the humanist is likely to be that such momentous developments would quickly come to pass in particularly the Middle East. Because in the latter theatre almost every passing hour surfaces problems […]

Minister of Labour and Foreign Employment Manusha Nanayakkara says he has sought proposals from officials of the SLBFE and foreign employment agencies to Âcompletely stop sending Sri Lankan women overseas to serve as housemaids.

Sri Lanka said on Wednesday (21 Feb.) it had exported tea worth USD 20 million to Iran to partially repay its USD 251 million oil debts, with Colombo saying Tehran s visiting foreign minister had expressed Âsatisfaction at the deal.

Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has reaffirmed Iran s dedication to fostering tourism to Sri Lanka and strengthening cultural ties between the two nations.

Manusha accuses Wimal of having taken parts of Fernando’s speech out of context By Saman Indrajith Labour and Foreign Employment Minister Manusha Nanayakkara told NFF leader Wimal Weerawansa in Parliament to refrain from taking chunks of others’ speeches out of context and misinterpreting them for political mileage. The Minister said so following concerns raised by […]

Profit before Tax increases by 258% amidst external challenges Pan Asia Banking Corporation PLC reflected a steady performance amidst multitude of adversities emerging from challenging macro-economic conditions as the Bank reported its financial performance during 2023, which showed judicious portfolio management and prudency exercised in dealing with possible fallout on its asset quality in chall...

In his policy statement during the inauguration of the 5th session of the 9th parliament, President Ranil Wickremesinghe insists that the solution to the economic crisis lies in economic and scientific measures, not political ones. However, he draws inspiration from Confucius and urges citizens to introspect and cleanse their hearts, which can be seen as […]

An extensive discussion was held on Tuesday (20 Feb.) between Sri Lanka s Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Sabry and his Iranian counterpart Dr. Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who is on an official visit to Colombo.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who is on an official visit to Sri Lanka, called on President Ranil Wickremesinghe at the Presidential secretariat in Colombo, a short while ago, the President s Media Division confirmed.