Welcome to Morning Brief, where we track that of Sri Lanka economic woes, Turkey new business with Finland and Sweden, and a migrant tragedy in Texas.

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Sri Lanka faces fuel shortages

Welcome to Morning Brief, where we track that of Sri Lanka economic woes, Turkey new business with Finland and Sweden, and a migrant tragedy in Texas.

If you would like to receive Morning Brief in your inbox every weekday, please sign up here.

As Sri Lanka’s economic nightmare continues, the country’s fuel supply is dwindling and authorities are struggling to cope.

As fuel shortages plague the country, the government has enacted strict nationwide energy saving measures while searching for alternative sources. Just this week, Sri Lankan officials announced that they would ban fuel Sales for private vehicles until July 10. To limit fuel consumption, schools were also closed and the public was asked to work from home.

“Sri Lanka has never faced such a severe economic crisis in its history,” said Bandula Gunawardana, spokesman for the cabinet. journalists.

For months, Sri Lankans have both suffered and protested against the soaring inflationsevere power outages and food shortageswhich many attribute to the failed government Strategies and broader economic mismanagement. replicas of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine have only compounded these challenges, and the government by default on its external debt for the first time in May.

The roots of this crisis go back more than a decade, as reported by journalist Devana Senanayake in Foreign Police in April. In 2009, Sri Lankan authorities received new loans for infrastructure projects, she wrote, but did not have enough money to repay them after a number of economic shocks.

Now ordinary citizens are paying the price. “The price of gasoline is my husband’s daily income. Words fail me when I have to describe daily expenses,” a woman named Champika told Senanayake. “We are struggling to find money for even one meal.”

As the situation deteriorates, the government is trying to find workarounds. On Tuesday, an official went to Qatar with the aim of obtaining a new energy agreement; This weekend, another minister is due to visit Russia. In addition, the government also discussed a possible several billion dollars bailout with the International Monetary Fund.

But given the country’s current economic situation, developing new partnerships can be difficult.

“We are struggling to find suppliers. They are reluctant to accept letters of credit from our banks,” said Sri Lankan Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera. said on Sunday. “We are doing everything we can to get new stock but we don’t know when that will be.”

Finland and Sweden are moving closer to NATO membership. Turkey, Finland and Sweden have signed a OK which effectively paves the way for the two Nordic countries to join NATO. The deal breaks what was a significant diplomatic stalemate, FP’s Jack Detsch, Amy Mackinnon and Robbie Gramer reportand “avoids a potential protracted fight over Finnish and Swedish membership that Western officials feared would drag on for months”.

Subsequently, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the agreement. “Finland and Sweden joining NATO is good for Finland and Sweden, it’s good for NATO and it’s good for European security,” he added. said in a report.

Migrant tragedy in Texas. US officials have accused two individuals, Juan Francisco D’Luna-Bilbao and Juan Claudio D’Luna-Mendez, in connection with the death of 51 migrants found inside a truck in Texas. Authorities reportedly used the truck registration to identify and locate the two suspects, before monitoring them at their homes. They were later charged with possession weapons during an illegal stay in the United States.

“They had families … and were probably trying to find a better life,” said San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg. said after the discovery of the migrants. “This is nothing less than a horrific human tragedy.”

Israeli abortion law. Just days after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to strike down Roe v. Wade, Israel has decided to ease restrictions in its abortion law. The country will now include abortion pills in its universal health care and will no longer require women to receive committee approval to have an abortion.

“The United States Supreme Court’s decision to deny a woman the right to her body is a grim decision,” Israeli Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz said. said in a report. “We are somewhere else and we are making great strides in the right direction today.”

Reviving the Iran nuclear deal? American and Iranian diplomats landed in Qatar on Tuesday to restart the indirect nuclear talks, although no major breakthrough is expected. The talks, the first since the breakdown of the last round in March, will be publicized by Enrique Mora, the European Union negotiator.

As cities across Italy grapple with an acute drought, a mayor instituted a unique water conservation measure and clashed with local hairdressers. Under the new guidelines, any salon caught double-shampooing clients’ hair, and therefore using extra water to rinse, will be subject to a fine of up to 500 euros.

Some hairdressers balked at the order. “It seems a bit ridiculous”, Katia du Nuova Team hairdressers say it Guardian. “It’s hard not being able to wash and rinse twice, because some of the products we use require it, and also hair types, especially if the client’s hair is quite dirty.”