International Affairs

From left: Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation National Program Manager Madushika Lansakara, Swiss Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives Dr. Dominik Furgler, US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives Alaina Teplitz, US Agency for International Development Sri Lanka and Maldives Mission Director Reed Aeschliman and Migration Skills and Guidance YouLead Director Nirosha Hapuarachchi

BAGHDAD, IRAQ - Pope Francis, who is on an historic Iraq tour, Sunday visits Christian communities that endured the brutality of the Islamic State group until the jihadists' caliphate was defeated three years ago.

AMMAN, JORDAN - Pope Francis is making the first-ever papal visit to the biblical land of Iraq, arriving he says as a “pilgrim of peace" for all Iraqis, although the country’s beleaguered, dwindling Christian community will take special encouragement and comfort from his presence.

India Friday said Sri Lanka’s claim that New Delhi had cleared the proposal of an Adani group company to develop the West Container Terminal (WCT) at Colombo Port is “factually incorrect”.

Police and security forces in several cities in Myanmar used force to disperse anti-coup protesters who returned to the streets Saturday, a day after a U.N. envoy urged the Security Council to take actions against the junta and for democracy to be restored.

China will endorse a US $ 500 million loan and a currency swap arrangement of two billion Yuan (around US $ 600 million) within the next couple of weeks, informed sources said.

Sri Lanka mounted a staunch defence of China’s treatment of a Muslim minority in the Xinjiang province at the Human Rights Council on Thursday (4), slamming a report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Religious Freedom and casting doubt on the credibility of sources.

The Sri Lankan Government’s claim that a proposal on the Colombo Port West Container Terminal (WCT) has been approved by the Indian High Commission is ‘factually incorrect’, said the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Friday, the IANS news service reported.

The Government of Japan provided a total sum of $ 636,363 (approx. Rs. 120 million) through the Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP) to Delvon Assistance for Social Harmony (DASH) for humanitarian demining activities in Northern Sri Lanka.

AMMAN - Pope Francis Sunday visited Christian communities in Iraq’s north, where the Islamic State group carried out its worst devastation, to bring encouragement and solace to those who suffered numerous atrocities and are trying to rebuild their homes and lives. Iraqis are also hoping to rebuild trust and hope for the future.

Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan, Chief of the Air Staff, Pakistan Air Force arrived in Sri Lanka, on 4 March to attend the 70-year celebrations of the Sri Lankan Air Force. He was greeted with a very warm welcome and reception by the Commander of the Sri Lankan Airforce. This visit signifies the strong bond and friendship between the two countries and their Armed Forces.

LONDON - Confidence in COVID-19 vaccines is growing, with people's willingness to have the shots increasing as they are rolled out across the world and concerns about possible side effects are fading, a 14-country survey showed on Friday.

Trade unions in Myanmar called for a strike starting Monday in an attempt to back the anti-coup movement and pressure members of the military junta.

Reuters: Preliminary data from a study conducted at the University of Oxford indicates that the COVID-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca PLC is effective against the P1, or Brazilian, variant, a source with knowledge of the study told Reuters yesterday.

Demonstrations against Myanmar’s military junta took place across the country again Thursday in the wake of what the United Nations described as “the bloodiest day” since the February 1 coup.

ජිනීවාහි පැවැත්වෙන එක්සත් ජාතීන්ගේ මානව හිමිකම් කවුන්සිලයේ 46 වැනි සැසිවාරය සඳහා, ශ්‍රී ලංකාව සම්බන්ධයෙන් ඉදිරිපත් කර ඇති යෝජනාව පිළිබඳ ඡන්ද විමසීම මාර්තු 22 වැනිදා පැවැත්වීමට නියමිතය.

WASHINGTON - China’s eastern province of Shandong has reversed a long-standing rule restricting movement from rural areas to the cities in an effort to boost urban consumption and close the social division between the province’s urban and rural dwellers.

ඉන්දියානු ගුවන් හමුදා ප්‍රධානී එයාර් චීෆ් මාර්ෂල් රාකේෂ් කුමාර් සිං බාදවූරියා මහතා ඊයේ (03) පස්වරුවේ අරලියගහ මන්දිරයේ දී අගමැති මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතා හමු විය.