My Serendib

The National Security Advisor of India recently made a thought-provoking statement regarding India’s neighbours . He said that due to weak governance, public uprisings had led to regime changes in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. His statement was true. These...

In 2014, the China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation (CATIC), a state-owned entity, submitted a proposal to establish an aircraft maintenance facility in Sri Lanka. The Chinese proposal aimed to provide maintenance services for Chinese-made aircraft belonging to the...

On August 1, Trump reduced the tariffs that had previously been imposed on Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. He made this decision after reaching trade agreements with these South Asian countries. Under these agreements, Pakistan agreed to purchase crude oil...

There was some unrest about certain container transshipments before the removal of Bimal Ratnayake from the Ministry of Ports and Civil Aviation. Those container transshipments belonged to a Chinese company. The United States had warned the Sri Lankan government that...

After J.R. Jayewardene introduced the Executive Presidency, India extended official visit invitations to Sri Lankan Prime Ministers only during periods when there were distinct power centres within the government. Since J.R.’s Prime Minister, Ranasinghe Premadasa, did not maintain particularly warm...

A circular issued by the government in January stated that any minister or government official must obtain the President’s approval before meeting foreign dignitaries or envoys. According to the opposition, this circular was specifically aimed at Prime Minister Harini Amarasooriya....

President Anura Kumara, addressing a campaign rally in Kandy during the 2024 general election, revealed that he had held successful discussions with the Japanese Ambassador on securing Japanese assistance for the Kandy expressway. He made the announcement after considering repeated...

The latest Investment Climate Report from the U.S. State Department has stirred political debate, noting that Sri Lanka’s investment environment remains “constrained” and that institutional corruption continues under the current National People’s Power (NPP) administration. This turned out to be...

As the US, India and China are engaged in a competition over Sri Lanka’s energy, Russia has reiterated its interest in a nuclear power plant in Sri Lanka. The Russian ambassador to Sri Lanka recently stated that he hopes to...

Last week, the United States Trade Representative came to Sri Lanka and met President Anura Kumara. They came to discuss the agreement reached on tariffs imposed on Sri Lanka by President Trump. Trump had significantly reduced the tariffs imposed on...