International Affairs

Pope Francis has called for civil union laws for same-sex couples in what is a dramatic change from the Vatican's position on the subject.

India is keeping a close watch on the Chinese activities and its financial influence taking place in Sri Lanka under the name of strategic partnership, leading Indian politician claimed.

Sri Lanaka's ambassador designate to Japan, China and designated representatives to UN mission in New York and Geneva paid a courtesy call on HE Mahinda Rajapaksa, Prime Minister Oct-16th 2020.

චීනයේ නිෂ්පාදිත කොවිඩ්-19 වෛරසය සඳහා නිපදවන ලද එන්නත් ස්වේච්ඡාවෙන්ම ඉදිරිපත්වූ පුද්ගලයින් 60,000කට අත්හදා බැලීම සඳහා ලබාදී ඇත. මේ සඳහා රටවල් 10ක ජාතීන් 125කට අයත් පුද්ගලයින් බව චීන බලධාරීන් පවසනවා.

The World Health Organization says 184 countries have now joined the COVID-19 global vaccine alliance, known as COVAX, designed to speed development and ensure distribution of viable vaccines and treatments for the ailment caused by the coronavirus.

Thousands of protesters were in the streets of Bangkok, Thailand, again Saturday in defiance of a government crackdown as they continue to push for the ouster of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha.

Says all 48 who returned were Lankans, went through quarantine process
Assures to inform Parliament once origin of new outbreak is known
Industries Minister also says no Indians have come for work since outbreak of COVID-19
Says Immigration Controller has confirmed this

Sri Lanka ranked 64th out of the 107 countries in the 2020 Global Hunger Index (GHI), with a score of 16.3 and a level of hunger that was termed ‘moderate’.

LONDON - Human traffickers are capitalizing on the coronavirus pandemic to target people ranging from jobless migrants to out-of-school children, two U.N. specialists said, warning that the fallout from COVID-19 had driven the crime further underground.

Duo discuss steps to promote bilateral cooperation on education, investment and tourism

Reuters: Global coronavirus cases rose by more than 400,000 for the first time late on Friday, a record one-day increase as much of Europe enacts new restrictions to curb the outbreak.

Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, leading the Sri Lanka delegation to the 20th Virtual Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers Meeting (CFAMM) in the sidelines of the 75 UN General Assembly, called for innovative thinking, collective and integrated strategies to address the multi-dimensional and cross cutting challenges in the wake of the COVID -19 pandemic.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Justice Department along with the attorneys general of 11 states brought a massive anti-trust lawsuit against Google on Tuesday, accusing the tech giant of maintaining illegal monopolies over search and search advertising on the internet.

Thousands of demonstrators continued to protest Thailand’s prime minister in Bangkok Sunday, defying a ban on gatherings of more than four people.

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters): Strong international cooperation on COVID-19 vaccines could speed up the world economic recovery and add $ 9 trillion (6.9 trillion pounds) to global income by 2025, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said on Thursday.

US Secretary of State Michael R Pompeo will have bilateral talks in Sri Lanka during a brief visit next week, the Government said today.

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN - A suicide bomber has detonated his explosives-packed vehicle outside a provincial police headquarters in central Afghanistan, killing at least 15 people and wounding more than 150 others.

Afghan officials condemned Sunday’s attack in Firozkoh, the capital of Ghor province, as an act of terrorism, saying mostly civilians were among the victims. The powerful blast also damaged nearby government offices, they said.

Map of Firozkoh Afghanistan
Mohammad Omer Lalzad, the head of the provincial hospital, told VOA that “a number of injured people are in critical condition.” Lalzad said he expected the death toll to rise.

No group has claimed responsibility, although the Afghan Interior Ministry blamed Taliban insurgents.

The acting U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan condemned the attack.

“Innocent Afghans were again killed today through a senseless bombing in #FerozKoh in #Ghor province. This destruction and bloodshed must stop. Afghans deserve to live their lives in peace,” Ross Wilson tweeted.

Deal violations

Meanwhile, the insurgent group Sunday accused the U.S. military of violating a February peace deal between the two sides by carrying out “excessive airstrikes” in Taliban-held areas in southern Helmand province and elsewhere in the country.

Muhammad Yousuf Ahmadi, a spokesman for the Islamist Taliban, said the agreement signed in Doha, Qatar, Feb. 29 prohibits American forces from launching airstrikes in areas other than combat zones or during active fighting.

“All contents of the U.S.-Islamic Emirate [Taliban] agreement are unambiguous, but the opposite side has violated its commitments on numerous occasions, are engaging in provocative actions and bombing non-combat zones,” Ahmadi said.

British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab on Friday accused Russia of mounting a worldwide disinformation campaign aimed at eroding public confidence in Western coronavirus vaccines, calling the action "reprehensible" at a time when countries should be coming together to tackle a pandemic that's killed more than a million people.