ICRC delegation holds talks with Defence Secretary

India and Sri Lanka hold annual defence dialogue

The fourth Annual Defence Dialogue (ADD) between India and Sri Lanka was held in Colombo, the Indian High Commission in Colombo said. Indian Defence Secretary Mohan Kumar and Sri Lankan Defence Secretary Karunasena Hettiarachchi co-chaired the meeting along with their delegations, comprising officers from the Defence Ministries, Foreign Affairs Ministries and the Armed Forces of both the countries. During the ADD, various ongoing defence cooperation initiatives were jointly reviewed and new av

04 Nov, 2016

Sri Lanka owes $65 billion for loans it obtained

Sri Lanka owes $65 billion for the loans it obtained from lending agencies and countries it borrowed money from. Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen said that the country?s debt-to-GDP currently stands around 75% and a significant portion of all Government revenue is currently going towards debt repayment. As a result he says the government is experiencing fiscal difficulties to meet its development and rehabilitation goals. Speaking at a World Trade Organisation meeting in Genev

03 Nov, 2016

Finance Minister rejects comments by Chinese envoy

Finance Minister, Ravi Karunanayake, today rejected the statement made by China?s Ambassador to Sri Lanka, stating that loans given by China to Sri Lanka was at a 2 percent interest rate. Karunanayaka told journalists that if China had given loans at 2 percent, then Sri Lanka would only pay 2 percent. ?If he says they have not given loans with interests more than 2%, we are happy because we will only have to pay 2% then,? he said. He further lashed out at the Ambassador stating, ?I reject his

03 Nov, 2016