Latest News
Russia gives British diplomat Adrian Coghill a week to leave Moscow
A British diplomat has been given a week to leave Russia in an escalation of a diplomatic spat over spying.
The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement the removal of Capt Adrian Coghill was in response to “unfriendly anti-Russian actions” from Britain.
On 8 May the Russian defence attache was expelled from London for alleged espionage as an “undeclared military intelligence officer”.
Russia says its response “does not end with this measure”. It added the “initiators of the escalation will be informed about further retaliatory steps”.
It was inevitable following the UK’s earlier announcement that Russia would declare Capt Coghill, a Royal Naval officer and Britain’s defence attache based at the embassy in Moscow, persona non grata.
Russian statecraft follows closely the principle of proportionality, which means for every tit, there must be a tat. So British diplomats in Moscow will expect further constraints.
All this would have been taken into account when the government decided last week to crackdown on Russian espionage in the UK.
Ministers would have decided that the loss of Britain’s defence expert in the embassy in Moscow was worth the gain of disrupting Russian activities in the UK.
Writing on X, previously known as Twitter, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps called the expulsion by Russia a “desperate move”.
He said Russia’s only issue with Capt Coghill was that he “personified the UK’s unwavering support for Ukraine in the face of his illegal and barbaric invasion”.
The removal of Col Maxim Elovik was among a number of other measures announced by the Home Office, Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence – as part of plans to “tighten defences against alleged malign activity by Russia” across Europe.
In April, five people were charged over conspiring to commit espionage activities in the UK on behalf of Russia under the National Security Act, the first prosecutions of this kind under the new laws.
Another of the measures included the removal of diplomatic premises status from several Russian properties in the UK – including in Sussex and Highgate, which officials believe had been used for “intelligence purposes”.
Russian diplomatic visas were also affected, with restrictions including a cap on the length of time holders can spend in the UK.
Last week, Home Secretary James Cleverly said Moscow would make accusations of ‘Russiophobia’ while spreading cons[iracy theories and hysteria.
Col Maxim Elovik appears to have been in the UK since at least 2014.
Prior to his posting in London, Col Elovik served as an assistant military attache at Russia’s embassy in Washington DC.
(BBC)
Pakistan’s Fakhar Zaman has been fined 10% of his match fee and docked one demerit point after he was found guilty of breaching level 1 of the ICC code of conduct during the tri series final against Sri Lanka on November 29.
Fakhar was found to have breached article 2.8 of the code of conduct, which relates to “showing dissent at an umpire’s decision during an international match.” He admitted to the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by the match referee, so there was no need for a formal hearing, said an ICC release.
The incident occurred in the 19th over of the final when Fakhar back-peddled from short-third, dived and seemed to have taken a stunning catch off Dasun Shanaka’s leading edge. The third umpire was called to check for the catch, and he deemed that the ball brushed the ground when Fakhar dived, and ruled it not out. Both Fakhar and the bowler, Shaheen Shah Afridi weren’t happy with the decision and made it known to the on-field umpires.
The very next ball, Shanaka swiped across the line and was clean bowled. Fakhar looked at the umpire and sarcastically appealed for the decision. Pakistan eventually won the final by six wickets as batting first, Sri Lanka collapsed in a heap, losing 9 for 30 to be bowled out for 114. Babar Azam shepherded the chase with an unbeaten 37, taking Pakistan over the line in 18.4 overs.
This was Fakhar’s first offence in a 24-month period. Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, a maximum penalty of 50% of a player’s match fee, and one or two demerit points.
[Cricinfo]
The situation report issued by the Disaster Management Centre at 1800hrs today (5th December) confirms that 607 persons have died due to the adverse weather conditions while the number of missing persons has reduced to 214.
The number of persons affected topped the 2 million mark (2,082,195).
The Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) formally took delivery of the EX- United States Coast Guard Cutter, USCGC DECISIVE, provided by the United States to SLN, at a ceremony held at the United
States Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore on 02 Dec 25. The event was also attended by the Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda.
The ship formally joined the SLN fleet on 02 December under the pennant number P 628 and the main mast of the ship will fly the National Flag effective from that date.
Aiming to strengthen and develop partnerships to overcome common challenges in the maritime domain, the U.S. Coast Guard has previously provided 03 ships to SLN and they are currently patrolling island waters under the names of ‘Samudura’ (P 621), ‘Gajabahu’(P 626), and ‘Vijayabahu’ (P 627).
As an extension of partnership ties that bring value to each other’s services, Ex-USCGC DECISIVE was transferred as the fourth ship to be handed to SLN.
Ex-USCGC DECISIVE, a ‘B-Type Reliance Class 210-foot Cutter’, measures 64m in length, and having endurance of 6000 NM at cruising speed. Further, she has been designed for a
crew of 100 and is equipped with weapons and machinery.
The ship which was used by the U.S. Coast Guard has rendered exceptional service during her tenure by curbing illegal activities, including smuggling of narcotics in U.S. waters.
Sri Lanka inherits an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) that is seven times larger than the landmass. In such a backdrop, the Navy is determined to deploy this vessel in wide-ranging
operations that include the conservation of marine resources in the region and the search and rescue of naval and fishing communities in distress. Thereby, the Navy will be able to utilize
this vessel efficiently in the future to achieve the national aspiration, while ensuring safe and secure seas for all economic affairs.
The formal handing over – taking over ceremony was also distinguished by the presence of the Deputy Chief Acquisition Officer and Director of Domain & Integration Services U.S. Coast
Guard, James L. Knight, Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for South and Southeast Asia, Dr. Andrew Byers, the Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the United States, Mahinda Samarasinghe, Commanding Officer designate of P 628, Captain Gayan Wickramasuriya as well as a group of officials from the Embassy of Sri Lanka in United States and the State Department
of the United State
Fakhar Zaman fined 10% of match fee for showing dissent at umpire’s decision
Showers will occur in the Northern, North-Central, Eastern,Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, North-western and Uva provinces and in Matale district
IMF pledges additional aid to Lanka following Cyclone Ditwah destruction
Marrikkar Mohamed Thahir takes oath as SJB National List MP
Govt. to roll out loan facilities for new entrepreneurs from next month
Customs working to clear four-day cargo backlog caused by Ditwah
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
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