May 12, 2016 Reading Time: 2 minutes
Kenya to shut down Dadaab refugee camp. Image credit - ikurucan /depositphotos
Reading Time: 2 min read
Japanese naval ships arrive in Colombo port
The Sri Lankan navy has welcomed two Japanese naval ships at the Port of Colombo, on a goodwill and replenishment visit, yesterday.
The Commander of the 51st Minesweeper Division, Captain Toshihiro Takaiwa, paid a courtesy call to the Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne, at the Naval Headquarters in Colombo. Matters of mutual interest and bilateral importance were discussed.
German delegation arrives in SL
Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, Uwe Beckmeyer, will visit Sri Lanka from the 15-17 May.
Beckmeyer will be accompanied by a 29-member business delegation of leading German enterprises that represent various sectors including infrastructure, tourism, and renewable energy.
Chinese grant to develop SL health sector
A proposal to improve the Sri Lankan healthcare sector made by the Health Minister, Dr. Rajitha Senarathne, was approved by the Cabinet.
The proposal widens the scope of a programme established in 2010. This would allow funds, subject to a financial limit of USD 85 million, to be used towards improving healthcare facilities islandwide, instead of only in the North and the East.
Russia and Ukraine agree on security measures
The Foreign Ministers of Russia and Ukraine have agreed to create demilitarized zones and implement additional security measures in separatist-held areas in eastern Ukraine. However, the parties failed to reach an agreement with regards to local election procedures.
Over 9,000 people have been killed since fighting erupted in April 2014 between the Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Kenya to shut down refugee camp
The Kenyan government has declared its intention to close the world’s largest refugee camp within a year. The camp is home to 330,000 Somali refugees.
By closing the camp, the government aims to strengthen national security, following a string of terror attacks by al-Shabaab extremists. The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) declared its concern over the proposed action, and has requested that the Kenyan government reconsider its decision.
US to activate missile defence site in Romania
The US is scheduled to activate a USD 800 million missile shield in Romania in order to protect the region from short and medium-range missiles, particularly from the Middle East.
The defence system will be handed over to NATO in July. Mikhail Ulyanov, an official from the Russian foreign ministry, opposed the decision and stated that the shield ‘is a violation of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty’.
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