SJB’s Sajith Premadasa appointed as Sri Lanka’s interim president: report

Sri Lanka’s main opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya on Monday unanimously decided to appoint Sajith Premadasa as interim president. The SJB said party secretary Ranjith Madduma Bandara submitted the proposal and it was seconded by party chairman Marshal Sarath Fonseka during the caucus held this afternoon, it was reported. Newswire. The SJB has nearly 50 MPs in Parliament and to win a vote in Parliament it needs the support of 113 MPs.

Kyiv ‘strongly condemns’ fast-track Russian citizenship for Ukrainians

Ukraine on Monday condemned a decree by President Vladimir Putin simplifying the procedure for Russian citizenship for all Ukrainians, more than four months after the Russian invasion. “The mentioned decree is another encroachment on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, incompatible with the norms and principles of international law,” the Foreign Ministry said. “Ukrainians do not need Putin’s citizenship and attempts to impose it by force are doomed to failure,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.

Post of US envoy to India vacant for 18 months, no clarity on confirmation of Biden’s nominee

The post of US Ambassador to India has been vacant for nearly 18 months, the longest such gap in nearly three decades, amid reports that US President Joe Biden’s nominee Eric Garcetti, faces an uphill battle in his Senate confirmation. The position became vacant when a political representative from Donald Trump’s former administration, Ambassador Kenneth Juster, resigned in January 2021 after the change of government in the United States.

French prime minister survives vote of no confidence in parliament

French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne comfortably survived a no-confidence motion tabled against her by a broad alliance of left-wing opponents on Monday. An official vote tally showed 146 lawmakers voted in favor of the motion. The motion required an absolute majority of 289 votes to hasten the fall of the government. Regrouping — to complicate the life of Emmanuel Macron in parliament.