News
Biden can’t escape fallout from Afghanistan
I can’t speak to the foreign-policy implications of the collapse of government forces in Afghanistan, or the consequences for the Afghan people. I can talk a little about what’s at stake for President Joe Biden, author Jonathan Bernstein says in an article written to Bloomberg News.
The following are some excerpts from the article.
To begin with: It’s very unlikely that there will be any direct public-opinion effect, and if there is it will almost certainly be short-lived. It’s even less likely that the Taliban’s resurgence will have any effect on the 2022 midterms, let alone the 2024 presidential election. Republicans may try to make “Who lost Afghanistan?” an election theme, but there’s virtually no evidence that voters care about such things. Normally, the only thing in foreign policy and national security that seems to have an effect is when troops die in combat. This doesn’t mean that Biden has nothing at stake. A president’s reputation affects how much influence he or she has. Biden brought some advantages with him to the White House in this regard; his experience, in the Senate and as vice president, almost certainly meant that most people were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt — something that Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump would have to (and often did not) earn. The situation in Afghanistan puts Biden’s reputation for foreign-policy expertise at risk. Indeed, it’s not just the facts on the ground there that matter. Biden has consistently set expectations high, and has done very little to make a public case that the Afghan government’s collapse was a risk worth taking. Given the strong chances that things would work out as they have, that seems like a real mistake.There’s more than that. One of the ways that presidents gain influence is by earning a reputation as a winner, and one of the ways they do that is, well, by having a string of wins. In some ways this is simple. The more people Biden deals with — in the executive branch, in Congress, in state and local governments, in the private sector, and more — think of Afghanistan as a fiasco, the less likely they are to assume that Biden will win future battles. And that will make them less likely to act accordingly. That said, there were plenty of downside risks to other policy options as well. That Biden may have sold his choices badly matters, but it doesn’t mean they weren’t the least-bad decisions available. Indeed, if Biden was committed to pulling all U.S. troops out of Afghanistan, it may be better for him to get it over with early in his presidency — and, to be blunt, perhaps he’s better off having the government fall now, if it had to happen at some point. All of this may sound cynical. But the job that Biden signed up for, as the political scientist Richard Neustadt explained long ago, requires a certain amount of cold calculation — specifically, about how to help his own political situation and expand his influence. Otherwise, the president can only fall back on the formal powers of the office, which aren’t sufficient to get very much done. That’s bad for the president, and also for the nation.
Projected revenue at Rs. 5.3 Bn, budget deficit 1.75 Bn
Rs. 6,500 Mn allocated for Clean Sri Lanka initiative
Estate wages hiked to Rs. 1,750 from Rs. 1,350 per day
Rs. 1 Bn allocated to address human-elephant conflict
Rs. 342 Bn for road development programmes
The government has decided to reduce the annual turnover threshold for the registration of Value Added Tax and Social Security Contribution Levy from Rs. 60 million to Rs. 36 million.
The proposal will be implemented with effect from 01 April, 2026.
The new tax system has been proposed with the view of broadening the tax base, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said during his 2026 Budget speech in Parliament yesterday.
He said that the total number of registered taxpayers in Sri Lanka has increased by 300,000 as of 30 September, 2025, compared to 2024.
The President made this revelation while delivering the 2026 Budget speech.
President Dissanayake also confirmed that the Simplified VAT System (SVAT) has been abolished with effect from 01 October, 2025, and has been shifted to an approved refund process to improve tax compliance and reduce misuse.
Presenting the Budget Proposals for the year 2026 commenced at 1.30 pm and continued till 5.57 pm.
According to the 2026 Budget proposal delivered by the President, the government’s expected revenue for 2026 is set at Rs. 5,300 million while the expenditure has been projected to be Rs. 7,057 million.
The Budget deficit will be Rs. 1,757 million or 5.1% of the Gross Domestic Product.
The government has proposed to remove the Special Commodity Levy on imported coconut oil and palm oil and implement the general tax structure including Value Added Tax.
The new tax system on imported coconut oil and palm oil will be implemented from April 2026, President Dissanayake said.
At present, locally produced coconut oil and palm oil are subjected to Value Added Tax and Social Security Contribution Levy, while imported coconut oil and palm oil are subjected to Special Commodity Levy at Rs. 150 per kilogram and Rs. 275 per kilogram, respectively.
The new tax proposal has been proposed to ensure a level playing field, the President stated.
President Dissanayake said that a total of Rs. 6,500 million has been allocated for the Clean Sri Lanka programme for next year.
President Dissanayake said that the land acquisition process for the proposed Kurunegala-Dambulla expressway is currently underway.
Accordingly, through the 2026 Budget, the government has allocated Rs. 1,000 million to complete the land acquisition process, the President said.
The government has allocated a sum of Rs. 342 billion for road development programmes in the 2026 Budget, President Dissanakaye stated. A total of Rs. 66.1 billion has been allocated for the Kadawatha-Mirigama section of the Central Expressway through the 2026 Budget.
Furthermore, Rs. 10.5 billion for the Pothuhera-Rambukkana and Rs. 20 billion for the Rambukkana-Galagedara section of the central expressway have been allocated through the Budget.
The President said that through the 2026 Budget, a sum of 25,500 million has been allocated to develop Sri Lanka’s digital economy. He also pledged to establish a Digital Economy Council next year.
The allocation will facilitate the infrastructure needs, streamlining investment processes and fostering an innovation-friendly environment.
The government has proposed to allocate an additional provision of Rs. 1,000 million to the Department of Wildlife Conservation to expedite the completion of electric fence constructions and related projects aimed at mitigating human-elephant conflict across the country, the President said.
In addition, Rs. 10 billion has been proposed for research initiatives to identify long-term, research-based solutions beyond the construction of electric fences to reduce these elephant-human conflicts, he said.
Estate worker wages are to be hiked to a total of 1,750 rupees a day, President Dissanayake said, presenting the Budget for 2026.
“We believe that estate workers should be paid a fair daily wage, commensurate with their work,” the President said.
The current minimum wage of an estate worker is 1,350 rupees a day.
An additional 200 rupees will be given daily by the government to encourage estate workers to come to work, Dissanayake said.
“This is as an incentive for them to show up for the 25 days.” The government will allocate 5,000 million rupees for this, he said.
The Budget Debate on the Second Reading of the Appropriation Bill will commence on 08 November and continue for six days. The vote on the Second Reading is scheduled for 14 November (Friday) at 6 pm.
The Committee Stage Debate is set to begin on 15 November and will continue for 17 sitting days, including three Saturdays, until 05 December. The vote on the Third Reading of the Appropriation Bill is to be taken up at 6 pm on 05 December.
During the budget period, Parliament will meet daily, except on Sundays and public holidays. Sessions will begin at 9.30 am on Mondays and at 9 am on other days. Each day’s sittings will continue until 6 pm, with time from 6 to 6.30 pm allocated for adjournment motions, shared equally between the Government and the Opposition, except on voting days.
In addition, during the Committee Stage Debate, provision has been made for five Questions for Oral Answers and one Question under Standing Orders 27(2), apart from the regular business under Standing Orders 22(1) to (6).
Supreme Court Justice S. Thurairaja was sworn in as the Acting Chief Justice before President Anura Kumara Dissanayake yesterday (07) at the Presidential Secretariat.
The appointment was made to discharge the duties of the position during the absence of Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena, who is currently overseas.
Secretary to the President, Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayaka, was also present on the occasion.
The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) yesterday announced that the total number of foreign tourists who have visited the country so far, in 2025, has exceeded 1.9 million.
SLTDA said that a total of 32,815 tourists visited Sri Lanka during the first five days of November 2025. With this addition, the cumulative number of tourist arrivals for the year has risen to 1,923,502.
The highest number of daily arrivals during this period—7,412 tourists—was recorded on 01 November, with India continuing to lead as the top source market for Sri Lanka.
So far this year, the largest number of tourists have arrived from India (431,235), followed by the United Kingdom (177,167), Russia (138,061), Germany (119,415), and China (113,619).
Govt. corrals many more into tax net by lowering VAT threshold from Rs. 60 Mn to Rs. 36 Mn
Justice Thurairaja sworn in as Actg CJ
India leads in tourist arrivals that has topped 1.9 Mn so far
President AKD unveils reforms to anchor 7% growth target
Minister Herath off to Riyadh to attend UNWTO General Assembly
Nilanga Dela re-elected Diyawadana Nilame
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
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