COLOMBO

Amid persisting questions from the political Opposition and media about Sri Lanka’s recent defence sector Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with India, the government has asked those seeking more information to use the country’s Right To Information (RTI) Act.

Addressing a media briefing earlier this week, Cabinet spokesperson Nalinda Jayatissa said some of the contents of the MoU cannot be released without India’s consent. The political Opposition, including the main Opposition bloc Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB or United People’s Power), has accused the Anura Kumara Dissanayake administration of “secrecy” and demanded that the MoUs signed with India be tabled in Parliament.

The MoU pertaining to the defence sector was one of seven signed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka from April 4 to 6. Others spanned areas such as energy co-operation, digital initiatives, and health. During the visit, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told presspersons that the defence sector MoU is an “umbrella agreement” providing a framework to pursue ongoing defence sector cooperation in a more “structured” manner.

In his statement during the visit, PM Modi said he was “grateful to President Dissanayake for his sensitivity towards India’s interests.” “We believe that we have shared security interests. The security of both countries is interconnected and co-dependent,” he said.

Retired civil servant Austin Fernando, who has served as Secretary to the Ministry of Defence and as Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India, observed “Indian defence interests were exposed” in PM Modi’s remarks. “Do we share the much-critiqued Akhanda Bharat concept? Do we endorse Indian-Russian-American-Israeli security and defence interlinks as ours too? Do we connect with Sino-Indian clashes? We may have reservations,” he wrote in a recent newspaper column. Some other columnists argued that the MoU signalled a possible shift from the government’s “non-aligned” foreign policy.

The scrutiny of the MoU began in Sri Lanka even before Mr. Modi arrived in Colombo. Ahead of the state visit, Indian media reported that “a major defence pact” or “key defence deal” was to be signed with Sri Lanka, triggering scepticism among media commentators in Colombo.

The spotlight has only grown after the visit. Addressing a rally in the southern town of Galle days after Mr. Modi’s visit, President Dissanayake said the defence MoU signed with India “simply formalises ongoing joint operations and training sessions with India”. Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath clarified that it was a “non-binding MoU”, and not a “pact”.

An official source from Sri Lanka, familiar with the bilateral discussions on the MoU, told The Hindu: “Sri Lanka has nothing to worry about. As far as India is concerned, there has been a lot of baggage from its earlier interventions,” the source said, referring to the role of the Indian Peace Keeping Force and Operation Poomalai, carried out by the Indian Air Force to airdrop food in Jaffna, in the late 1980s. “Now it is time to move on, considering the strategic realities of today,” the source said, requesting anonymity citing the sensitivity of the issue.

In its editorial last weekend, the widely read Sunday Times noted that the MoUs pertaining to the ‘Energy Hub’ proposal in the strategically located eastern district of Trincomalee, and ‘defence cooperation’ “have raised uncomfortable questions” in Sri Lanka following Mr. Modi’s visit. “And what is most intriguing is why, when the Indian PM himself and commentators in Delhi are gaga over the MoUs, the Sri Lankan President and his government are maintaining a deafening silence — hiding them from the public?” the newspaper contended, urging the government to make the MoUs public.

Meanwhile, it is unclear if the MoU, pitched as a framework to formalise ongoing cooperation in personnel training and intelligence sharing, specifically addresses the area of permitting research vessels from China, an issue that has remained sensitive to Delhi.

Recently, some Indian media claimed that a proposed joint naval exercise of Pakistan and Sri Lanka was called off, after Colombo “refused” to entertain the request. The reports sought to link the “decision” to the recently signed MoU. However, the Sri Lankan side was quick to deny the reports.  Ministry of Defence spokesperson Colonel Nalin Herath told The Hindu: “There was no cancellation of such a joint exercise. We had a Pakistani Naval vessel call at a Colombo Port in March.” The official media release of the Sri Lankan Navy at the time said Pakistan Navy Ship (PNS) Aslat engaged in “a successful passage exercise” with its patrol vessel SLNS Samudura.

As the public viewing of Pope Francis’s body began, mourners were interrupted by visitors who turned the occasion into a ghoulish photo-op. Some Instagrammers even smiled as they posed in front of the open casket. “People were being asked to put their selfie sticks away when they got to the front,” UK tourist Martin Gilsenan told the Mirror.
“There were also many people looking around and getting upset with those on the phones,” he said, with images showing others crowding around taking pics, despite being told not to..
“I found the mobile phones very distasteful,” added Gilsenan’s wife, Catherine. “I was very surprised there were photos.”
The casket was not put on an elevated bier as it was his request to not make it difficult for the people to pay their last respect to him.
Until the funeral on Saturday, his body, dressed in papal vestments, will lie in state at St Peter’s Basilica.
The funeral will take place on Saturday at 10 a.m. local time (4 a.m. Eastern) in St. Peter’s Square, the Vatican announced. A public funeral Mass will be held in front of St. Peter’s Basilica, presided over by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals.
The funeral will be more modest than rites for past pontiffs: Francis last year simplified the rules around papal funerals, with changes that include using only one wooden coffin instead of three.
After the Mass, Francis’ body will be interred in the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, where seven other popes are buried.
Francis wrote in his will that he wanted his “last earthly journey to end at this very ancient Marian shrine.” He requested a simple, undecorated tomb with only the inscription “Franciscus,” the Vatican said.
World leaders and Catholic worshippers from around the world will attend the funeral. Expected attendees include: President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine, President Javier Milei of Argentina and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil, the world’s largest Catholic country.

A picture of Bashar al-Assad, damaged by bullets.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The British government said Thursday it was lifting sanctions against a dozen Syrian entities, including government departments and media outlets, to help the country rebuild after President Bashar Assad was toppled from power in a lightning rebel offensive in December.

The U.K. had put the sanctions in place against those who supported Assad’s repressive rule, helped violently suppress civilians and spread misinformation.

“The Syrian people deserve the opportunity to rebuild their country and economy, and a stable Syria is in the U.K.’s national interest,” Hamish Falconer, minister for the Middle East, said in a statement explaining the purpose of lifting the sanctions.

Syria’s new leaders have struggled to begin rebuilding the country’s decimated economy and infrastructure after nearly 14 years of civil war. The new authorities in Damascus have made a push for harsh sanctions imposed by western countries on Assad’s government to be lifted, with limited success.

Financial sanctions and asset freezes were lifted on several government agencies, including the ministries of interior and defense, the Foreign Office said.

Sanctions were also dropped against the General Organization of Radio and TV, a state-run agency that allegedly spread propaganda for Assad and incited violence against civilians. The Foreign Office said it also lifted sanctions against Al Watan, a newspaper, Cham Press TV, and Sama TV, for spreading misinformation.

Sanctions imposed against Assad and associates remain in place and legislation was amended to allow the former leader and others to be held accountable for atrocities committed against Syrians.

In March, the U.K. dropped sanctions against two dozen Syrian businesses, mostly banks and oil companies.

The Trump administration in the U.S. has yet to formally recognize the new Syrian government led by President Ahmad al-Sharaa, an Islamist former insurgent who led the offensive that ousted Assad. The militant group al-Sharaa led, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, remains a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, and the sanctions imposed on Damascus under Assad remain in place.

However, Washington has eased some restrictions. The U.S. Treasury in January issued a general license, lasting six months, that authorizes certain transactions with the Syrian government, including some energy sales and incidental transactions.

The European Union, meanwhile, has begun to ease some energy and transport sanctions and banking restrictions against Syria, suspending measures targeting oil, gas and electricity as well as transport, including the aviation sector.