News

SL should not stop trading with Moscow to please Washington, London – Ranil

Published

4 years ago

2022/03/5

Sri Lanka should not be stopped from trading with Russia because placing sanctions on Russia is something that the US and UK want, United National Party (UNP) leader Ranil Wickremesinghe said on Thursday at a meeting with a group of youth activists.

Wickremesinghe said: “The war in Ukraine will affect everyone and there is a lot of potential in Asia to overcome the challenges posed by war and western sanctions.

“Firstly, no one wants SWIFT and other such tools to be used as a political weapon. If the US and UK want to place sanctions against Russia, that is their business. But we should not be stopped from trading with Russia and others. We live in a globalised economy, but we have agreed that the West would run the system. But if the system is going to be used for political purposes, where we lose, then I think Asia has to look at another system. China is starting a China-centric one, some of the others may not want a China-centric one, but will want one that is acceptable to all. I think Africa may also join it. That is where the power is. The West is losing that power it had,” he said.

When this confrontation comes to an end, Indonesia, which is the chair of the G20 and is also where the first Asian conference was held, should get together with China, India, and the UAE to summon a conference of all Asian nations and re-invent Asia. Indonesia was the country that hosted the Bandung Conference, and so they should take the lead and call for such a conference, he said.

Asia must step in and ensure the war in Ukraine does not reach global proportions, Wickremesinghe said, adding that while most countries around the world agree that Russia invaded Ukraine, they do not approve of what the West has done.

“The fact is Asia is silent. The African Union has also not taken part, Brazil and Argentina have supported the US but the Mexicans have stayed out. Asia hasn’t condemned Russia the way America expected them to. They have raised issues with the invasion. In the Security Council India, China and the UAE are all silent. They were non-committal. Indonesia, the leader of the G20 is non-committal. Pakistan is also going around Russia. So it looks like most of Asia is going along with Russia. Now that is what is important, because Asia counts today. Everyone is neglecting this, nobody wants to report it,” he said.

Wickremesinghe said that Asian countries do not want to be affected by a war that can cause global economic fallout. Despite many problems among them, Asian countries have ensured that they do not escalate into full blown war.

“Therefore, the Asian view is that we cannot only allow the West to decide the rules of the world. Asia must come in, and that is a view I have, and many others have. The Government of Sri Lanka has been non-committal like all the others, such as Bangladesh. Some of them who have commented have not said who has invaded whom, the invasions are bad, and the war must stop. This is what the media is not highlighting, because the West cannot accept that Asia today is also calling the shots,” he said.

Wickremesinghe said that Sri Lanka exports low country and mid-grown tea to countries such as Russia. Due to the war a lot of the low-grown and mid-grown smallholders’ families will be having problems. Factory holders too will be affected, and this will become a serious issue for Sri Lanka.

Ukraine is basically a part of the old Soviet Union and Russians think of Ukraine like we think of Kandy, the UNP leader said. Wickremesinghe said that the war between Russia and Ukraine could have been prevented

“There were problems between Russia and Ukraine because NATO wanted to bring in missiles, and that is part of the old Soviet Union territory, which they should not have done. This went on for some time, and then there is the famous case of Russians taking over Crimea, which originally belonged to them and then they got into Donbas and other areas,” he said.

Wickremesinghe added that President Obama and President Trump did not make Ukraine an issue, but President Biden’s foreign policy seems to be to take on both Russia and China. He wants to be the defender of the Western Order, Wickremesinghe said.

“Especially President Trump reached out and had a good rapport with President Putin. Now after President Biden came in, his foreign policy seems to be to take on both Russia and China. Recently Russia and China signed an agreement which is called the “no-limit friendship”, which is a friendship without limits and boundaries or prohibitions. Thereafter Russia was emboldened further to ask that nuclear missiles not be put in Ukraine and Ukraine should not become a member of NATO. The U.S. and U.K., not the other NATO members, tried to play their own game and corner Russia and make Russia back down by getting Ukraine to say they want to be part of NATO. They expected Putin to climb down. Putin thought was ready, or thought he was ready, and he invaded Ukraine. So the real issue is about the security of Russia and what are they going to do. They took the West and the Americans by surprise,” he said.

Wickremesinghe added that the sanctions against Russia will not deter them. Sanctions are the only tool available to the West because they are not prepared to fight the Russians. The West has also removed Russian banks from SWIFT and both President Biden and Prime Minister Boris Johnson are acting tough because of domestic politics, the UNP leader said.

“President Biden also is in a problematic area. (Former) President Trump says he knew how to deal with Putin and handle Ukraine. So, he (Biden) had to show he can bring results, and he needs to bring results quickly because he is going to lose in the midterm elections. So, he is pushing hard on the sanctions thinking Russia will come down and he can save himself. Basically, many of the issues will be domestic issues, and the Republicans won’t be unhappy if the Russians stay on in Ukraine a bit longer because they can get the advantage of it. The third man with elections is President Macron of France. But he is playing a different role, he is showing that he can talk to Russia, he can talk to the West, and he can talk to China. So, he is telling the Frenchmen that if you remove me you will not have a leader who is recognised globally. So, he is playing a different game to the other two. The Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison is also having elections and he is also upping his stakes to show he can be tough on China. But all this means is that we do not know where this will end. They are playing for their politics, and this will bring the global economy down,” he said.

Wickremesinghe said that China, India, Pakistan, Iran, and the Central Asian republics would help Russia.” These are all members of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation, and the events of the past week have shown that the Organisation has held together. On the other hand, although India is a part of the Quad, it has not taken the same line as the US.”

All News Advertisement

Latest News

58,454 International aircraft movements in Sri Lanka in first 11months of 2025 – Ministry of Ports and Civil Aviation

Published

8 hours ago

2025/12/31

Priyan

According to figures released by the Ministry of Ports and Civil Aviation there have been 58,454 international aircraft movements in the first 11 months of 2025 in Sri Lanka. [An aircraft movement refers to the count of take offs and landings at an airport]

The figures also confirm that tourist arrivals via air stands at 2.1 million.

Latest News

Highest revenue in 93-year history of Inland Revenue Department collected in 2025

Published

10 hours ago

2025/12/31

Priyan

The Inland Revenue Department has succeeded in collecting Rs. 2,203 billion in revenue in 2025, the highest amount recorded in its 93-year history. This represents a surplus of Rs. 33 billion over the revenue target for the year and a 15 per cent increase compared with the revenue collected in the previous year, stated Commissioner-General of Inland Revenue Ms Rukdevi Fernando.

She made these remarks at a discussion held on Tuesday (30) morning at the Department’s auditorium under the patronage of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

Marking the first occasion in the 93-year history of the Inland Revenue Department that a President has visited the Department, the President attended a meeting with the staff to review the progress achieved in 2025 and the new plans for 2026.

The President expressed his appreciation to all officers and staff of the Inland Revenue Department for surpassing the revenue expected by the Government and urged everyone to continue working towards a common objective in order to realise the economic transformation required for the country.

Emphasising that no individual is entitled to the privilege of evading taxes, the President stated that the era in which a tax culture prevailed based on personal or political affiliations has come to an end. He further stressed that the law will be enforced without hesitation, irrespective of status, against those who attempt to evade taxes.

The President also pointed out that tax collection is neither repression nor coercion but a legitimate right of the State, adding that necessary changes will be made to laws, regulations, designations and staffing in order to secure this contribution.

He further emphasised that the Government’s objective is to ensure that the benefits of these economic achievements flow to the people of the country. The Government is focusing on improving essential public services to enhance the quality of life, undertaking a new transformation of the transport system and providing adequate allocations for the development of the education and health sectors.

The President also highlighted the need for a targeted programme to properly collect the taxes due to the Government by addressing issues such as improving tax literacy, simplifying the tax system and filling staff shortages.

Ms Rukdevi Fernando stated that the professional competence and dedication of the Department’s officers were the key factors behind this success.

She further noted that a revenue target of Rs. 2,401 billion has been set for 2026 and that the Department expects to achieve this through programmes aimed at enhancing tax compliance and broadening the tax base.

In addition, she said that the Department plans to expand third-party data sharing, strengthen investigations into domestic and overseas assets, take over the RAMIS system, reinforce risk-based auditing, introduce e-invoicing, adopt modern technology for tax administration and enhance tax ethics in 2026.

Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Dr Anil Jayantha Fernando, Deputy Minister of Economic Development Nishantha Jayaweera, Secretary to the President Dr Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Commissioner-General of Inland Revenue Ms Rukdevi Fernando and senior officials and staff of the Department were present at the occasion.

Business

Sri Lanka Customs exceeds revenue targets to enters 2026 with a surplus of Rs. 300 billion – Director General

Published

19 hours ago

2025/12/31

Priyan

The year 2025 has been recorded as the highest revenue-earning year in the history of Sri Lanka Customs, stated Director General of Sri Lanka Customs, Mr. S.P. Arukgoda, noting that the Department had surpassed its expected revenue target of Rs. 2,115 billion, enabling it to enter 2026 with an additional surplus of approximately Rs. 300 billion.

The Director General made these remarks at a discussion held on Tuesday (30) morning at the Sri Lanka Customs Auditorium, chaired by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

The President visited the Sri Lanka Customs Department this to review the performance achieved in 2025 and to scrutinize the new plans proposed for 2026. During the visit, the President engaged in extensive discussions with the Director General, Directors and senior officials of the Department.

Commending the vital role played by Sri Lanka Customs in generating much-needed state revenue and contributing to economic and social stability, the President expressed his appreciation to the entire Customs employees for their commitment and service.

Emphasizing that Sri Lanka Customs is one of the country’s key revenue-generating institutions, the President highlighted the importance of maintaining operations in an efficient, transparent and accountable manner. The President also called upon all officers to work collectively, with renewed plans and strategies, to lead the country towards economic success in 2026.

The President further stressed that the economic collapse in 2022 was largely due to the government’s inability at the time to generate sufficient rupee revenue and secure adequate foreign exchange. He pointed out that the government has successfully restored economic stability by achieving revenue targets, a capability that has also been vital in addressing recent disaster situations.

A comprehensive discussion was also held on the overall performance and progress of Sri Lanka Customs in 2025, as well as the new strategic plans for 2026, with several new ideas and proposals being presented.

Sri Lanka Customs currently operates under four main pillars, revenue collection, trade facilitation, social protection and institutional development. The President inquired into the progress achieved under each of these areas.

It was revealed that the Internal Affairs Unit, established to prevent corruption and promote an ethical institutional culture, is functioning effectively.

The President also sought updates on measures taken to address long-standing allegations related to congestion, delays and corruption in Customs operations, as well as on plans to modernize cargo inspection systems.

The discussion further covered Sri Lanka Customs’ digitalization programme planned for 2026, along with issues related to recruitment, promotions, training and salaries and allowances of the staff.

Highlighting the strategic importance of airports in preventing attempts to create instability within the country, the President underscored the necessity for Sri Lanka Customs to operate with a comprehensive awareness of its duty to uphold the stability of the State, while also being ready to face upcoming challenges.

The discussion was attended by Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Anil Jayanta Fernando, Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Nishantha Jayaweera, Secretary to the President, Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Deputy Secretary to the Treasury, A.N.Hapugala, Director General of Sri Lanka Customs, S.P.Arukgoda, members of the Board of Directors and senior officials of the Department.