By Shamindra Ferdinando Eric Walsh presented his credentials to President Ranil Wickremesinghe, on Feb. 02, at the President’s House in Kandy. Wickremesinghe was flanked by Foreign Minister Ali Sabry, PC, and Presidential Secretary Saman Ekanayake. Canada, with the concurrence of Sri Lanka, appointed Walsh as High Commissioner of Canada to Colombo. Walsh, who had served […]

Energy giant BP has reported record annual profits after oil and gas prices surged last year following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The company’s profits more than doubled to $27.7bn (£23bn) in 2022, compared with $12.8bn the year before. Other energy firms have seen similar rises

The global economy will weaken this year as rising interest rates and Russia s war in Ukraine continue to weigh on activity. But economists are more optimistic than they were just a few months ago.

Ukraine s president has thanked Western leaders for sending tanks to support the fight against Russia, but said they needed to be delivered quickly.

USD 3 mn Japanese grant attached to ongoing project By Shamindra Ferdinando An agreement on the much advertised cash assistance, provided exclusively to paddy farmers by the Wickremesinghe-Rajapaksa government, was finalised several weeks before then President Gotabaya Rajapaksa stepped down on July 14, 2022 amidst violent protests. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has provided the […]

Russia s military says it has captured the Ukrainian salt-mine town of Soledar after a long battle, calling it an Âimportant step for its offensive.

The World Bank slashed its 2023 growth forecasts on Tuesday to levels teetering on the brink of recession for many countries as the impact of central bank rate hikes intensifies, Russia s war in Ukraine continues, and the world s major economic engines sputter.

Russia s overnight bombing of regions in eastern Ukraine killed at least one, local officials said on Sunday, after Moscow ended a self-declared Christmas ceasefire and vowed to push on with combat until it reaches a victory over its neighbour.

Washington [US], January 1 (AF): A bilateral agreement signed between China and Russia in July 2021 makes clear that cooperating on news coverage and narratives is a big goal for both governments, according to a report in The Intercept, an America-based publication. The report

The UN has freshly prioritized the ushering of international peace as one of its foremost tasks in the days ahead and sensible sections the world over are likely to back it overwhelmingly in this historic undertaking. There is no doubt that those quarters that are sensitive to the constantly rising human costs of war and […]

(AFP)Sri Lanka on Thursday welcomed the first Russian travellers aboard a new flight service that was launched after the bankrupt nation urged Moscow to help revive its beleaguered economy by sending tourists. Russia was Sri Lanka’s biggest source of visitors at the start of the year but arrivals

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a phone call to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday sought India’s help in the implementation of a peace formula with Russia. “I had a phone call with PM Modi & wished him a successful G20 presidency. It was on this platform

As India assumes the G20 presidency, the Chinese State media have begun discussing what it means. Unlike Indonesia, which was the chair till recently, the discussion about India’s presidency is focused on Beijing’s strategic competition with New Delhi. The Chinese State media commentary suggests that Beijing wants to stop the border dispute from being discussed […]

By Dr Laksiri Fernando One mistake we normally make in analysing the situation or crisis in Sri Lanka is to do it in isolation. Sri Lanka is unfortunately only a part of a world system. Although this situation is valid to almost all other countries, smaller or weaker a country, larger are the effects of […]

Pakistan is making efforts to find a new energy alliance to ensure an uninterrupted energy supply to households and industries, Geo-Politik reported. Pakistan is trying to diversify its energy sources for tackling the energy crisis. A delegation of Pakistani ministers, including the Minister of State (Petroleum Division) Musadik Masood Malik travelled to Kazakhstan from November […]

Ukraine s Foreign Minister on December 26, 2022 said that his government is aiming to have a peace summit by the end of February, preferably at the United Nations with Secretary-General António Guterres as a possible mediator, around the time of the anniversary of Russia s war.

Russia is ready to negotiate with all parties involved in the war in Ukraine but Kyiv and its Western backers have refused to engage in talks, President Vladimir Putin said in an interview aired on Sunday.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Thursday (22) instructed relevant officials to formulate a report with inputs from all government agencies on the resolution of land problems in Nuwara Eliya district before February 04. Addressing the Nuwara Eliya District Development Committee, President Wickremesinghe said urgent solutions should be given to the land problems of the people without […]

New York [US], December 10 (ANI): India has reiterated its stance that dialogue and diplomacy remain the way forward to de-escalate tensions between Russia and Ukraine and bring both sides to the negotiating table. “We have emphasised that dialogue and diplomacy are the only way forward, answers