As Sri Lanka's former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa arrived in Thailand to seek refuge, reports claim the former president is awaiting a US Green Card to settle down in the United States with his family.

A media report in Sri Lanka stated that US authorities had begun processing Gotabaya's application. Reports claim the former president is set to return to Sri Lanka on August 25. Rajapaksa is currently staying in a hotel at an undisclosed location in Bangkok.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/australia-commits-another-25-million-in-emergency-aid-to-sri-lanka-takes-total-to-75-million-508249">Also Read:&nbsp;Australia commits another $25 million in emergency aid to Sri Lanka</a>

Rajapaksa had arrived in Bangkok earlier this month in a private jet. The former president had flown to Singapore from the Maldives as protests escalated in the country due to the deepening economic crisis.

Singapore had extended a 30-day visa to Gotabaya even as he sought a safe haven in Thailand. Rajapaksa stepped down after protesters overran his residence last month amid large-scale demonstrations against food and fuel shortages driven by hyperinflation.&nbsp;The Lankan government had decided to default on its $51 billion foreign debt in April amid talks with the International Monetary Fund for a possible bailout.

Watch:&nbsp;Gotabaya Rajapaksa to return to Sri Lanka?

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During his stay in Singapore, a &nbsp;South Africa-based international human rights group had urged&nbsp;the Singapore government to indict Rajapaksa for crimes against humanity for his alleged role in the civil war which ended in 2009.

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan protesters continued their demonstrations as police fired tear gas and water cannon on Thursday. President Ranil Wickremesinghe had earlier decided to&nbsp;end the state of emergency imposed in the country due to escalating protests.

(With inputs from Agencies)

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As Sri Lanka's former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa arrived in Thailand to seek refuge, reports claim the former president is awaiting a US Green Card to settle down in the United States with his family.

As Sri Lanka's former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa arrived in Thailand to seek refuge, reports claim the former president is awaiting a US Green Card to settle down in the United States with his family. A media report in Sri Lanka stated that US authorities had begun processing Gotabaya's application. Reports claim the former president is set to return to Sri Lanka on August 25. Rajapaksa is currently staying in a hotel at an undisclosed location in Bangkok. Also Read: Australia commits another $25 million in emergency aid to Sri Lanka Rajapaksa had arrived in Bangkok earlier this month in a private jet. The former president had flown to Singapore from the Maldives as protests escalated in the country due to the deepening economic crisis. Singapore had extended a 30-day visa to Gotabaya even as he sought a safe haven in Thailand. Rajapaksa stepped down after protesters overran his residence last month amid large-scale demonstrations against food and fuel shortages driven by hyperinflation. The Lankan government had decided to default on its $51 billion foreign debt in April amid talks with the International Monetary Fund for a possible bailout. Watch: Gotabaya Rajapaksa to return to Sri Lanka? During his stay in Singapore, a South Africa-based international human rights group had urged the Singapore government to indict Rajapaksa for crimes against humanity for his alleged role in the civil war which ended in 2009. Meanwhile, Sri Lankan protesters continued their demonstrations as police fired tear gas and water cannon on Thursday. President Ranil Wickremesinghe had earlier decided to end the state of emergency imposed in the country due to escalating protests. (With inputs from Agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Former Sri Lanka president Gotabaya Rajapaksa has applied for Green Card to settle in US: Report

In Sri Lanka, the Rajapaksa family is facing intense pressure to step down. The public backlash is creating divisions between the brothers. There are growing reports of a rift. Palki Sharma brings you the details.

Gravitas: The Rift Between The Rajapaksa Brothers

Amid the political turmoil sweeping the country, Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa revoked the state of emergency in the country.

The Lankan president lost his parliamentary majority after allies walked out of the government amid large scale anti-government protests in the country.

On Tuesday, Sri Lanka's newly-appointed finance minister Ali Sabry quit after just one day in office as the opposition rejected the president's request for a unity government.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/sri-lankan-medical-body-declares-health-emergency-amid-political-turmoil-report-468449">Also Read:&nbsp;Sri Lankan medical body declares health emergency</a>

The island nation has witnessed an economic downturn ever since the pandemic hit the country over two years ago with its foreign reserves at an all-time low. In recent months, the country has struggled with fuel crisis and rising inflation including long power cuts.

Last week protesters tried to storm the president's house in Colombo as President Rajapaksa sought to impose a state of emergency in the country. The president's cabinet submitted their resignation en masse leading to further instability.

Watch:&nbsp;How can Sri Lanka escape this mess?

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Amid the political turmoil, 41 lawmakers left Rajapaka's coalition government reducing it to a minority. The medical body in the country had declared a state of health emergency on Tuesday due to a shortage of medicines and life-saving drugs.&nbsp;

The protesters have been demanding Rajapaksa's resignation amid the economic crisis even as authorities have moved to clamp down on demonstrators and reportedly arrested over 60 people.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/please-try-and-save-our-motherland-sri-lanka-opposition-leader-to-indian-pm-modi-468261">Also Read:&nbsp;'Please try and save our motherland': Sri Lanka opposition leader to Indian PM Modi</a>

There were protests outside the prime ministers' house on Tuesday as students chanted anti-government slogans. There have been street demonstrations against food and fuel shortages as the country has struggled to service its foreign debts.

The International Monetary Fund had said it was monitoring&nbsp;the situation closely amid&nbsp;reports of a bailout, however, there has been no confirmation on it.&nbsp;

(With inputs from Agencies)

Amid the political turmoil sweeping the country, Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa revoked the state of emergency in the country. The Lankan president lost his parliamentary majority after allies walked out of the government amid large scale anti-government protests in the country.

Amid the political turmoil sweeping the country, Sri Lanka President Gotabaya Rajapaksa revoked the state of emergency in the country. The Lankan president lost his parliamentary majority after allies walked out of the government amid large scale anti-government protests in the country. On Tuesday, Sri Lanka's newly-appointed finance minister Ali Sabry quit after just one day in office as the opposition rejected the president's request for a unity government. Also Read: Sri Lankan medical body declares health emergency The island nation has witnessed an economic downturn ever since the pandemic hit the country over two years ago with its foreign reserves at an all-time low. In recent months, the country has struggled with fuel crisis and rising inflation including long power cuts. Last week protesters tried to storm the president's house in Colombo as President Rajapaksa sought to impose a state of emergency in the country. The president's cabinet submitted their resignation en masse leading to further instability. Watch: How can Sri Lanka escape this mess? Amid the political turmoil, 41 lawmakers left Rajapaka's coalition government reducing it to a minority. The medical body in the country had declared a state of health emergency on Tuesday due to a shortage of medicines and life-saving drugs. The protesters have been demanding Rajapaksa's resignation amid the economic crisis even as authorities have moved to clamp down on demonstrators and reportedly arrested over 60 people. Also Read: 'Please try and save our motherland': Sri Lanka opposition leader to Indian PM Modi There were protests outside the prime ministers' house on Tuesday as students chanted anti-government slogans. There have been street demonstrations against food and fuel shortages as the country has struggled to service its foreign debts. The International Monetary Fund had said it was monitoring the situation closely amid reports of a bailout, however, there has been no confirmation on it. (With inputs from Agencies)

Sri Lanka President Rajapaksa revokes emergency order amid economic crisis

India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar is on a visit to Sri Lanka at&nbsp;a time when growing Chinese influence is testing this relationship.

Jaishankar is on a two-day visit and he will be holding bilateral talks with his counterpart, as well as the Rajapaksa brothers — President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and&nbsp;the Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The agenda

The first agenda of this visit is the proposal to build a terminal at the Colombo port, also known as&nbsp;the East Container Terminal. India, alongside Japan, has an agreement to develop this terminal for Sri Lanka.

In 2019,&nbsp;the three countries had signed a memorandum of cooperation. The terms were that the Sri Lanka ports authority will retain 100 per cent ownership, the terminal would be run by a joint company — owned collectively by India, Japan and Sri Lanka, and&nbsp;Sri Lanka will be the majority owner with 51 per cent, India and Japan will have a 49 per cent stake.

This agreement&nbsp;is starkly different from the one Sri Lanka signed with China for the Hambantota port —a&nbsp;project that was largely funded by China.

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/foreign-minister-jaishankar-to-visit-sri-lanka-in-the-first-visit-of-2021-354393" hreflang="en">Foreign Minister Jaishankar to visit Sri Lanka in the first visit of 2021</a>

The arrangement pushed Colombo into a debt trap. Ultimately, it had to lease the port to China for 99 years in 2017.

Now with the Indian minister in Sri Lanka, we might get an indication about Sri Lanka's thinking; which way its leaning for the Colombo port project because&nbsp;it has faced opposition from workers and some politicians.

However, the early signs are promising. Before Jaishankar's visit,&nbsp;Sri Lanka's port and shipping minister issued a statement saying&nbsp;the east container terminal will be developed and&nbsp;not sold to anyone. He claimed the terminal will be an "Economic and naval hub".

The second item on agenda could be&nbsp;financial assistance. Last year, Colombo had made a request to New Delhi. The Sri Lankan government wanted a special one billion currency swap facility with India as well as a debt moratorium.

These are testing times for the Sri Lankan economy. It faces what many are calling its "worst economic slump".

Last month, Colombo announced that its GDP for the second quarter plunged by 16.3 per cent. The Sri Lankan central bank projects a 3.9 per cent contraction this year mainly due to the coronavirus.

The pandemic has hit Sri Lanka's tourism sector badly too. International arrivals fell by close to 71 per cent in March last year. Before the pandemic, Sri Lanka reportedly lost 1.5 billion from tourism because of the easter bombings. So, the virus came as a double whammy for Colombo.

Now, Sri Lanka has ordered tight controls over foreign exchange. A ban has been imposed on all non-essential imports, including&nbsp;all types of vehicles.

Colombo's debt obligation amounts to around four billion a year, but Sri Lanka says it will honour all commitments. However, international ratings agencies have slashed the credit worthiness of Sri Lanka.

At a time like this, any assistance from India will be welcome in Colombo. More importantly,&nbsp;Jaishankar's visit could decide the future trajectory of this relationship.

India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar is on a visit to Sri Lanka at a time when growing Chinese influence is testing this relationship. Jaishankar is on a two-day visit and he will be holding bilateral talks with his counterpart, as well as the Rajapaksa brothers — President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.

India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar is on a visit to Sri Lanka at a time when growing Chinese influence is testing this relationship. Jaishankar is on a two-day visit and he will be holding bilateral talks with his counterpart, as well as the Rajapaksa brothers — President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. The agenda The first agenda of this visit is the proposal to build a terminal at the Colombo port, also known as the East Container Terminal. India, alongside Japan, has an agreement to develop this terminal for Sri Lanka. In 2019, the three countries had signed a memorandum of cooperation. The terms were that the Sri Lanka ports authority will retain 100 per cent ownership, the terminal would be run by a joint company — owned collectively by India, Japan and Sri Lanka, and Sri Lanka will be the majority owner with 51 per cent, India and Japan will have a 49 per cent stake. This agreement is starkly different from the one Sri Lanka signed with China for the Hambantota port —a project that was largely funded by China. Also read| Foreign Minister Jaishankar to visit Sri Lanka in the first visit of 2021 The arrangement pushed Colombo into a debt trap. Ultimately, it had to lease the port to China for 99 years in 2017. Now with the Indian minister in Sri Lanka, we might get an indication about Sri Lanka's thinking; which way its leaning for the Colombo port project because it has faced opposition from workers and some politicians. However, the early signs are promising. Before Jaishankar's visit, Sri Lanka's port and shipping minister issued a statement saying the east container terminal will be developed and not sold to anyone. He claimed the terminal will be an "Economic and naval hub". The second item on agenda could be financial assistance. Last year, Colombo had made a request to New Delhi. The Sri Lankan government wanted a special one billion currency swap facility with India as well as a debt moratorium. These are testing times for the Sri Lankan economy. It faces what many are calling its "worst economic slump". Last month, Colombo announced that its GDP for the second quarter plunged by 16.3 per cent. The Sri Lankan central bank projects a 3.9 per cent contraction this year mainly due to the coronavirus. The pandemic has hit Sri Lanka's tourism sector badly too. International arrivals fell by close to 71 per cent in March last year. Before the pandemic, Sri Lanka reportedly lost 1.5 billion from tourism because of the easter bombings. So, the virus came as a double whammy for Colombo. Now, Sri Lanka has ordered tight controls over foreign exchange. A ban has been imposed on all non-essential imports, including all types of vehicles. Colombo's debt obligation amounts to around four billion a year, but Sri Lanka says it will honour all commitments. However, international ratings agencies have slashed the credit worthiness of Sri Lanka. At a time like this, any assistance from India will be welcome in Colombo. More importantly, Jaishankar's visit could decide the future trajectory of this relationship.

Jaishankar visits Sri Lanka as island faces economic crisis

Meet the Rajapaksa dynasty: Patriarch, 'Terminator', 'Mr Ten Percent', 'bodyguard' and scion

Watch in WION Dispatch: Rajapaksa brothers at the helm in Sri Lanka. Watch this video as WION's Principle Diplomatic Siddhant Sibbal tells you more on this.

WION Dispatch: Rajapaksa brothers at helm in Sri Lanka