November 8, 2016 Reading Time: 2 minutes
Daniel Ortega elected as President of Nicaragua. Image Credit - dimarik/ depositphotos
Reading Time: 2 min read
President Sirisena meets President of India
President Maithripala Sirisena has met with President Pranab Mukherjee of India, in New Delhi.
President Mukherjee expressed his support of close Sri Lanka-India relations, stating that Sri Lanka should take advantage of India’s economic growth to catalyse its development. In addition, he urged the two countries to implement large developmental projects that are currently under discussion.
Sri Lanka attends science convention in Cuba
Minister of Science, Technology and Research, Susil Premajayantha, has attended the International Convention of Science, Technology and Innovation in Cuba. Minister Premajayantha highlighted the need for a collective effort towards transforming developing countries into models of technological, scientific and innovative development.
During his visit, Minister Premajayantha also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on scientific and technological cooperation with Cuba.
China approves treaty with Sri Lanka on criminal judicial assistance
China’s legislature has approved a treaty for criminal judicial assistance between Sri Lanka and China.
The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) affirmed that the treaty complies with basic principles of Chinese law, and aligns with China’s interests. In his preparatory explanation to the NPC, Vice Foreign Minister, Liu Zhenmin, emphasised the need to strengthen judicial cooperation between China and Sri Lanka due to the increase in trade, culture and tourism between the countries.
UK and India conclude bilateral discussions
Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, and Prime Minister Theresa May have concluded their meetings in New Delhi. The discussions focused on easing trade barriers, to prepare the two countries for a future trade deal following Britain’s exit from the European Union.
Prime Minister Modi emphasised that the UK should ease visa restrictions on Indians to facilitate cross-border mobility, which is vital to education, trade and investment. Prime Minister May responded by noting that the UK will review the visa process if India assists in repatriating Indian nationals who reside illegally in the UK.
German Minister urges modernisation of EU military
The German Minister of Defence, Ursula von der Leyen, has stated that the EU must improve its military to keep up with NATO’s military modernisation drive. Germany, France, Italy, and Spain have also been calling for a common European defence policy, following the UK’s decision to leave the EU.
Minister von der Leyen noted that the call for military modernisation was not intended to create competition between the EU and NATO, but rather to increase EU capabilities in security matters outside NATO’s purview.
Nicaragua concludes presidential election
Daniel Ortega has won the presidential election in Nicaragua, and is poised to become the country’s President for a third consecutive term. Nicaragua’s electoral board reported that Mr. Ortega won over 70% of the vote, with 66% of Nicaragua’s 3.8 million registered voters participating in the election.
The opposition in Nicaragua has stated that election results were manipulated, while the US State Department emphasised that a ban on international electoral observers eroded the legitimacy of the results.
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