Author: editor

Sri Lanka’s new government plans to sell off its national carrier to prevent losses, part of an effort to stabilize the country’s finances, even forcing authorities to print money to pay government salaries.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said in a televised address to the nation on Monday that the new administration was planning to privatize SriLankan Airlines. The carrier lost 45 billion rupees ($ 124 million) in the year ending March 2021, he said, just days before the nation officially defaulted on its foreign debt.

“It should not be that this loss should be borne by the poorest of the poor who did not set foot on the plane,” said Vikramasinghe.

Vikramasinghe – less than a week into his job – said he was forced to print money to pay his salary, which would put pressure on the country’s currency. The country has only one-day gas reserves and the government is working to get dollars in the open market to pay for three ships, including crude oil and furnace oil anchored in Sri Lankan waters, Vikramasinghe said.

“The next few months will be the most difficult month of our lives,” said Vikramasinghe. “To resolve the current crisis we must immediately establish a national assembly or political body with the participation of all political parties.”

The prime minister has promised to announce a new “relief” budget to replace President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s “development” budget, which has helped boost Asia’s fastest-growing inflation rate. The cabinet will propose raising the threshold for issuing treasury bills from Rs 3 trillion to Rs 4 trillion, Bikram Singh said, predicting a budget deficit of 13% of GDP for the year ending December 2022.

Vikramasinghe’s appointment came last week after violent clashes between government supporters and protesters demanding Rajapaksa’s resignation. He has not yet appointed a finance minister to lead the bailout talks with the International Monetary Fund and is seeking bridge loans from countries including India and China. It is unclear whether the government will receive cash in the absence of a full cabinet.

With the grace period for two unpaid foreign bonds ending on Wednesday, Sri Lanka is heading into a default, the latest blow to a country plagued by economic woes and social unrest.

The country’s dollar bonds rose on Monday, although they remained deep in the troubled region. JPMorgan Chase & Co. According to its data, surplus yield investors have demanded that the sovereign notes on the US Treasuries be reduced by 22 basis points to 37.29 percentage points.

In 2010, the Colombo government bought a stake in SriLankan Airlines from Emirates in Dubai. According to FlightRadar24, the national carrier, which has a fleet of 25 Airbus SE planes, flies to destinations in Europe, the Middle East as well as South and Southeast Asia.

Key points from the speech:

Revenue in 2022 could be Rs 1.6 trillion versus budget estimate of Rs 2.3 trillion

“In the next few days” প্রয়োজন 75 million is needed

“Inflation is likely to rise further”; The government will no longer be able to subsidize gasoline and diesel

(Except for the title, this story was not edited by NDTV staff and was published from a syndicated feed.)

US President Joe Biden has agreed to send hundreds of troops back to Somalia, reversing a move by his predecessor Donald Trump towards the end of 2020, an administration official told reporters during a conference call on Monday.

Before Trump ordered the withdrawal of troops, about 700 U.S. military personnel helped the Somali authorities fight the al-Shabab rebel group with which al-Qaeda has ties. According to a Biden administration official, the White House has seen “Clear evidence“The Al-Shabaab fighters have”The intent and ability to target Americans in the region,And it has already killed more than a dozen U.S. citizens in East Africa.

Therefore, he explained, the president, following the advice of Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, issued a “restoration order.”The U.S. military presence in Somalia to enable a more effective fight against al-Shabab, which has increased strength and created a higher threat.“

The official did not say exactly how many troops would be deployed in Somalia but said it would not exceed 500. He further added that instead of sending them directly from the United States, they would be repatriated from other parts of Africa.

The official also criticized the former president’s decision to withdraw troops.Against the senior advice of the US military leadership.“

Somalia was plunged into civil war in 1991, as groups that ousted the military government of General Mohamed Siad Barr clashed with each other. Early U.S. intervention to protect UN peacekeepers resulted in clashes with a warring factions and the October 1993 war in Mogadishu. The United States left Somalia in March 1995, returning only a decade later as part of a “war on terror.” ‘

Al-Shabaab, whose goal is to overthrow the government and impose sharia law on the country, has often carried out bombings across the country.

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New York:

The famous MacLean collection, the subject of a bitter divorce between a New York property developer and his ex-wife, has become the most expensive art collection sold at auction on Monday.

A spokesman told AFP that his second offer from the Sotheby’s collection sold for 6 246.1 million, bringing the group’s total value of paintings to 22 922.2 million.

It surpassed the হওয়া 835.1 million sold by the Rockefeller collection in 2018, the highest total ever made by a single personal collection at auction.

Among the highlights of Monday evening’s sale were Mark Rothkor’s “Untitled” for $ 48 million and Gerhard Richter’s “Cystic” for $ 30.2 million.

Andy Warhol’s “Self Portrait” sold for 18.7 million and Willem de Kuning’s “Untitled” sold for $ 17.8 million.

Sotheby’s won the right to sell McLean’s work in September. It sold 35 pieces in November for $ 676.1 million before selling the remaining 30 pieces on Monday.

Sotheby’s described the paintings as “emerging on the market as the most significant collection of modern and contemporary art.”

During the divorce proceedings, Harry MacLean and his ex-wife Linda could not agree on the value of the huge collection.

A New York judge ruled in 2018 that they should sell 65 jobs and share the profits.

(Except for the title, this story was not edited by NDTV staff and was published from a syndicated feed.)

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In the wake of Saturday’s mass shootings in Buffalo, New York, widening the gap between supporters and critics of former US President Donald Trump and his brand’s popularity among Republicans, ousted chairman Liz Cheney launched a new volley on Monday. He blamed the current leadership “Enable” Racist ideology.

“The House GOP leadership has enabled white nationalism, white supremacy, and anti-Semitism.” He tweeted, adding that the GOP leadership must “Abandon and reject these views and those who hold them” Because “History has taught us that what begins with words ends worse.”

“The Great Replacement Theory” There was a trend on Twitter on Monday as users across the political spectrum debated whether conservative voices like Tucker Carlson and the Daily Wire could be blamed for inciting or persuading gunman 18-year-old Payton Gendron to resort to violence. A 180-page manifesto he allegedly wrote has come under intense media scrutiny following the genocide. The so-called outline of the document “The Great Replacement Theory” White demographic displacement, which is the focus of the Alt-Right discussion.

“Here’s my replacement theory,” Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger commented, saying his fellow Republicans should “Replacement” The current chairwoman, Alice Stefanik, a representative from New York, and others are the cause “The replacement theory that they are pushing / tolerating is killing people.” Kingsinger and Cheney are the only Republicans on the Jan. 6 committee.

Stephanie’s office condemned it “Tragic and False Reporting” In a statement released Monday. Senior adviser Alex Degrass has called for an attempt to blame Stefanik for the Buffalo shooting. “A new disgusting low for the Left, their ally of Trump and the psychophantic stenographers in the media.” He claims to be Stephanie “Never advocated a racist position or made racist statements.”

The shootings took place in Buffalo, New York, on Saturday afternoon. A white gunman, 18-year-old Payton Gendron, entered a local supermarket with a rifle in military-style gear. He killed 10 people, most of whom were black. He has been charged with murder and could go to jail without parole if convicted under New York State law. Federal agencies are assisting in the investigation, which is being investigated as a potential hate crime and domestic terrorist incident.

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A video of a cab driver in the United States is going viral on social media. James Bod, the man behind the wheel, captured the disturbing exchange on his dashcam. The incident took place outside Fossils Last Stand Bar in Pennsylvania. The couple, in question, own the bar.

The clip opens with Mr. Bodd, a lift driver, greeting his passengers. After a while, we see a woman named Jackie getting into the cab And, the situation immediately turned his head. “Wow, you’re like a white man,” said the woman. Stunned, Mr. Bodd asked, “What is that?” “Excuse me?”

The woman then laughs and tries to stop the rapidly changing exchange by pressing on the driver’s shoulder. It didn’t go well with Mr. Bode. He told Mrs. Jackie to “get out of the car.” “It’s inappropriate, it’s completely inappropriate. If there was no white person in this seat, what would be the difference? He added.

Mrs. Jackie even confirmed that she was serious enough to tell him to leave the cab. Meanwhile, the man who was with her started abusing and threatening Mr. Bode, who calls them racists.

On his Facebook page, Mr Bode uploaded the entire exchange and wrote that he had filed a police report but was “not sure if it would do anything”.

In a report The Morning CallAccording to the owner of the bar, the woman has blocked the website and Facebook page of the bar

A number of people on social media platforms have praised James Bode for taking a stand.

“Thank you, James. We need more people like you in this world. Such a stand up guy,” said one person.

Another said, “James, we love you. What courage. Thank you for standing up for all humanity. “

The world needs more people like Mr. Bode, says a New Zealand user. “I just saw it in New Zealand. I appreciate your work. The world needs more like you. Well done, sir. “

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