News

Biden closes in, Trump promises litigation

Published

4 years ago

2020/11/7

Sahan Weerasooriya

* Election hanging on swing States

* Biden leading in GOP stronghold Georgia

* Trump’s chances thought to be fading

* White House renews fraud charge

* Trump criticized for ‘undermining electoral process’

* Possibility of race ending in a tie not ruled out

The US presidential election was down to a few States yesterday evening with Georgia with 16 electoral votes being prominent among them. According to official polls results, Democratic candidate Joe Biden was closing in. Biden had won 253 electoral votes and Trump 214. There was the possibility of the race going either way with the results of the remaining States coming in. Media outfits have announced different results, and this is because their conclusions are based on projected results.

The final result in Georgia, where Biden was leading at the time of going to press, is expected decide Trump’s fate in the race. This State has been a Republican stronghold for the last 28 years or so. If Biden bags Georgia he will have 269 electoral votes. If he loses it, he will have to win in two other states to pass the 270-vote mark. According to the projected results, if Trump loses Georgia, he will be able to secure only 269 votes even if he wins all other states including Pennsylvania, which has 20 electoral votes. A candidate has to obtain at least 270 electoral votes to win the election. If speculated scenario played out, the race might end in a tie, polls analysts say.

Biden, in his address to the people, said they had to wait until the last vote was counted. President Trump declared himself the winner on the election night itself, saying that he would take the election to the Supreme Court if he was defeated in what he called a fraudulent manner. He spoke from the White House again, yesterday, repeating the allegations of widespread vote rigging and other frauds. He said millions of postal votes had reached the counting centres after the Election Day and the Republican observers had been denied access to some centres. He, however, did not field questions from the media. He left immediately after making his 17-minute speech.

Meanwhile, elections to the House of Representatives and the Senate took place alongside the presidential race. The presidential contest has overshadowed them. The Democrats were hoping to capture power in the Republican-controlled Senate, where a party has to obtain 51 seats to be the winner. But, they were not likely to make it, according to political observers.

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AKD’s fourth state visit

Published

27 mins ago

2025/04/30

Sahan Weerasooriya

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake will undertake a four-day state visit to Vietnam on 03 May, Cabinet Spokesman Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa said. Since the presidential election, President Dissanayake has so far visited India, China and the UAE.

News

Sri Lanka-Pakistan bilateral defence dialogue strengthens strategic ties – MoD

Published

29 mins ago

2025/04/30

Sahan Weerasooriya

AVM Thuyacontha shaking hands with Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif (pic courtesy MoD)

The 5th annual Sri Lanka-Pakistan Bilateral Defence Dialogue commenced on Monday (April 28) in Islamabad, Pakistan, marking a continued commitment to strengthening defence cooperation between the two nations.

The MoD statement: “The Sri Lankan delegation is led by Defence Secretary Air Vice Marshal (retd.) Sampath Thuyacontha accompanied by Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda, and Additional Secretary (Defence) of the Ministry of Defence Jayantha Edirisinghe. The Pakistani delegation is headed by Lieutenant General (retd.) Muhammad Ali, Secretary Defence of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

In conjunction with the on-going defence dialogue, Defence Secretary Thuyacontha held a side-line meeting yesterday (April 29) with Defence Minister of Pakistan, Khawaja Muhammad Asif.

These high-level engagements aim to enhance bilateral cooperation, foster mutual understanding on regional security dynamics and explore opportunities for defence collaboration. Both nations share a longstanding relationship rooted in mutual respect and strategic cooperation. The dialogue reflects the growing importance of partnerships in maintaining stability and promoting peace in the South Asian region.

The three-day dialogue, which concludes today (April 30), is expected to reinforce bilateral defence ties and contribute to broader regional security objectives.

News

FS officers receive training on disarmament

Published

31 mins ago

2025/04/30

Sahan Weerasooriya

Foreign Service officers with Director of UNIDIR, Dr. Robin Geiss(pic courtesy FM)

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, in collaboration with the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), conducted a two day seminar on disarmament for Sri Lanka Foreign Service Officers on 25 and 26 April, 2025 at the Ministry. The text of the FM statement: “Over 40 officers, based in Colombo, attended the workshop physically while over 60 officers, attached to Sri Lanka Missions abroad, followed the Seminar virtually.

Director of UNIDIR, Dr. Robin Geiss, Senior Researcher at the UNIDIR Security and Technology Programme, Dr. Dongyoun Cho, and Associate of Political Affairs, Ms. Fanny Sebban of UNIDIR, conducted the Seminar as resource personnel. They shared their expertise and perspectives on the global disarmament landscape and evolving threats to international peace and security, etc.

Director of UNIDIR, Dr. Robin Geiss, called on Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath and discussed closer cooperation between the Ministry and UNIDIR.

The Human Resource Development, Research & Training Division and the United Nations and Human Rights Division of the Ministry organised the Seminar initiated by the Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in Geneva.”