An official meeting was held between Wang Dongming, Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) of the People’s Republic of China, and Prime Minister Dr Harini Amarasuriya on Wednesday [17 December] at the Parliament of Sri Lanka.
During the meeting, the long-standing bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and China and areas for further cooperation were discussed.
The Prime Minister expressed her appreciation for the timely assistance extended by the Government of China during Sri Lanka’s recent disaster response efforts and noted that the country has now transitioned from the emergency rescue phase to the post-disaster recovery and reconstruction phase. She also acknowledged the support provided by volunteers and the international community during the rescue operations.
Expressing his condolences to those affected by the recent disaster in Sri Lanka, Mr. Wang Dongming stated that, following China’s assistance during the rescue phase, support would also be extended during the recovery and reconstruction phase. He reaffirmed China’s continued commitment to supporting Sri Lanka’s social and economic development and expressed China’s readiness to work closely with Sri Lanka in regional and international affairs.
Special attention was paid to the matters discussed during the Prime Minister’s recent visit to China, including support for the provision of school uniforms and fertiliser assistance, technical cooperation in digital education, road development initiatives, and continued progress in the fields of education, health, and culture.
The meeting concluded with both sides reaffirming their commitment to further strengthening bilateral relations based on mutual trust, understanding, and long-standing friendship.
Qi Zhenhong, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Sri Lanka, Prime Minister’s Secretary Pradeep Saputhanthri, and officials from the Prime Minister’s Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were also present at the meeting.
USA will hope to keep Group A interesting [Cricinfo]
Whoever wins India vs Pakistan will go through to the Super Eights, which has implcations for the rest of Group A, in particular USA. They’ll want whoever slips up in that match to slip up again. If that happens, a most unlikely team might just find a way through to the next round. In this Valentine’s season, even the T20 World Cup is playing a bit of will they, won’t they.
USA are at the centre of the drama. They came into this tournament with enough administrative upheaval that the ICC had to step in and take charge of their selection. Then they lost one of their batters after he was linked to a corruption incident. Romcom wisdom is ironclad. You always have to be careful around bad boys. India almost weren’t, Netherlands certainly weren’t, and now we have a situation where USA are side-eying the Super Eights. But first they have to beat Namibia, who have played two and lost two and will be looking to channel that hurt into something tangible on the field.
Jan Frylinck made the highest score by a Namibia batter in T20Is when he hit 134 in the Africa Region Qualifier against Nigeria in September 2025. He showed good form in the World Cup warm-up matches last week, scoring 88 against Scotland in Bengaluru. At the tournament proper, he’s made 30 off 26 and 22 off 15 and will want to do more.
Shubnam Ranjane followed up a half-century against Pakistan with an unbeaten 48 off 24 against Netherlands. He exemplifies how the year-round T20 league version of cricket can pull players up. The allrounder who couldn’t break through with Mumbai now has contracts in SA20, ILT20 and MLC and came to the World Cup on the back of a playoffs run with Joburg Super Kings.
Andries Gous is crucial to USA’s batting strength but he hasn’t been able to play their last two matches due to illness. If he recovers, he could come back in for Shayan Jahangir now that Saiteja Mukkamalla has cemented himself at No. 3 with his match-winning fifty against Netherlands.
USA (possible): Monank Patel (capt), Andries Gous/Shayan Jahangir (wk), Saiteja Mukkamalla, Sanjay Krishnamurthi , Shubham Ranjane, Milind Kumar, Harmeet Singh, Mohammad Mohsin, Shadley van Schalkwyk, Nosthush Kenjige, Ali Khan.
Seventeen-year-old Max Heingo is obviously a player for the future. But at the present moment, he’s bowled three overs for 40 runs in this tournament and may be at risk of dropping down to the bench.
Namibia (possible): Louren Steenkamp, Jan Frylinck, Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton, Gerhard Erasmus (capt), JJ Smit, 6 Zane Green (wk), Malan Kruger, Ruben Trumpelmann, Bernard Scholtz, Ben Shikongo, Max Heingo.
The US Secretary of State signalled the Trump administration wants to strengthen ties with the continent during a speech in Munich [BBC]
Marco Rubio has assured European leaders the US does not plan to abandon the transatlantic alliance, saying its destiny “will always be intertwined” with the continent’s.
The US secretary of state told the Munich Security Conference: “We do not seek to separate, but to revitalise an old friendship and renew the greatest civilisation in human history.”
He criticised European immigration, trade and climate policies, but the overall tenor of the closely-watched speech was markedly different to Vice President JD Vance’s at the same event last year, during which he scolded continental leaders.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she was “very much reassured” by Rubio’s remarks.
Rubio, the Trump administration’s most senior diplomat, said it was “neither our goal nor our wish” to end the transatlantic partnership, adding: “For us Americans, our home may be in the Western Hemisphere, but we will always be a child of Europe.
“And I am here today to leave it clear that America is charting the path for a new century of prosperity, and that once again we want to do it together with you, our cherished allies and our oldest friends.”
However, he repeated several criticisms repeatedly levelled at Europe by the Trump administration, including describing immigration policies as a threat to civilisation, and saying a “climate cult” had taken over economic policy.
On trade, he said Europe and the US had “made mistakes together” by adopting a “dogmatic vision of free and unfettered trade”.
He repeated familiar calls from the US for Europe to invest more in defence, saying: “We want allies who can defend themselves so that no adversary will ever be tempted to test our collective strength.”
In response, von der Leyen said: “Rubio is a good friend, a strong ally. And this was, for me, very reassuring to listen to him.”
She continued: “We want a strong Europe. And this is, I think, the message of today.”
Elsewhere in his half-hour address, Rubio said the system of international co-operation “must be rebuilt” and singled out the UN for particular criticism, saying it had “played virtually no role” in resolving the Gaza and Ukraine conflicts.
He also said the organisation was “powerless to constrain the nuclear programme” of Tehran.
In recent weeks, US President Donald Trump has threatened strikes on Iran if a deal to curb its nuclear programme can be reached, as negotiations between the two intensify.
A second round of talks will be hosted by Oman in Geneva next week, the Swiss foreign ministry said on Saturday.
Outside the conference, an estimated 200,000 protesters held a rally against the Iranian government, local police report.
The demonstrators denounced the country’s leadership, following the government crackdown on January’s protests in which thousands of people were killed.
Outside the Munich Security Conference, a large crowd of protesters gathered to denounce the Iranian government [BBC]
Rubio also said the US did not know whether the “Russians are serious about ending the war” in Ukraine, before adding: “But we’re going to continue to test it.”
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky told the conference later on Saturday that no one in Ukraine believed his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin would leave the country alone, describing the Russian leader as a “slave to war”.
Zelensky has come under pressure from the White House to hold presidential elections, which have been suspended while the country is under martial law.
Asked about a Financial Times report that his administration was planning for elections as soon as May, Zelensky said it was “something new to me” and repeated that “nobody supports elections during the war”.
He said that Ukraine would need “two months of ceasefire” and “security infrastructure” to safely conduct elections.
West Indies have won both their games so far [Cricinfo]
From being one hit away from beating England to being hammered by T20 World Cup debutants Italy four days later, Nepal have seen the whole spectrum of emotions in Mumbai. Among the Associate teams at this World Cup, Nepal could easily have the biggest travelling contingent of fans, who must be wondering what would have been had Nepal sealed the thriller last Sunday that would have kept them far from their current bottom spot in Group C.
Fans’ expectations and social media distractions are things Nepal head coach Stuart Law has warned his team about, now that they have slipped to a must-win situation. Nepal need to pick themselves up after being trampled by the Mosca brothers to face their table-toppers and the in-form West Indies. This is the same West Indies side Nepal had taken down 2-1 a few months ago in Sharjah, in the first bilateral series between the two teams. But this is, in reality, not the same West Indies side because that one in September was without most of the first-choice players that have turned West Indies’ form around in this tournament after recent series losses against South Africa and Afghanistan at the start of the year.
It might take a mountain to climb for this defeated Nepal side to bring down West Indies, but there is hope. Nepal could learn from their two wins in September – and from Zimbabwe against Australia on Friday – that batting first might be the way to go to put pressure on stronger teams. Ever since West Indies have landed in India, they haven’t been put under the pressure of chasing so far.
Nepal also have the advantage of being stationed only in Mumbai so far, which would have given them a fair idea of the red-soil conditions at Wankhede. Since it’s a day game, Nepal may not mind being put in to bat if the toss doesn’t go their way.
West Indies hardly have any headaches. Their batters are belting sixes, their pace bowlers have picked wickets, their spinners strangled England and they took excellent catches too. They would want to continue their winning streak and seal the Super Eights spot soon.
After being beaten by Michael Leask’s arm ball in their opening match, Shai Hope would have been miffed for falling to a not-so-great ball against England. He bagged a duck and will be eager to lift his strike rate of 76 from the two games – the only West Indies batter who has struck at under 100 – as the tournament picks up pace and teams firm up their plans as per conditions and opposition. Hope will, however, draw confidence from the fact that he has been West Indies’ leading scorer since the last T20 World Cup and their top boundary-hitter too, for both fours and sixes.
Nepal will be looking for a cracking start to overcome their Italian heartbreak, and they don’t need to look any further than opening batter Kushal Bhurtel. He had taken down Jofra Archer and Luke Wood with a boundary barrage against the new ball that saw him smash 29 off 17. He is, however, due a big score and with his jersey number 14 as a dedication to Ricky Ponting, the muscular batter would want to emulate his idol in a crunch match.
West Indies packed a punch against England and won’t feel the need to tinker with their XI on the same ground.
West Indies (probable): Brandon King, Shai Hope (capt), Shimron Hetmyer, Roston Chase, Sherfane Rutherford, Rovman Powell, Jason Holder, Romario Shepherd, Akeal Hosein, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Joseph
Nepal captain Rohit Paudel was down with fever on Friday night but should be good to go on Sunday after taking some medicines, Stuart Law said.
