Sri Lanka rolls out fuel rationing system amid ongoing conflict in West Asia
Colombo (PTI): Sri Lanka on Sunday rolled out a fuel rationing system through QR code in view of a possible crisis situation due to the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
Cars are allowed 15 litres per week, while buses are allowed 60 litres per week, the Ministry of Energy said.
The QR rationing is introduced as a measure in view of hoarding by the consumers despite the continuous availability of enough fuel for 4 months, it said.
The rationing comes after the government announced this week that it was hopeful of securing fuel supplies from India and Russia.
Long queues were witnessed outside fuel retailers due to problems with the operation of the QR code, retailers said.
Earlier last week, Sri Lanka raised fuel prices to contain hoarding even as long queues were seen at fuel pumps since the war broke out on February 28.
The government had appealed to people to cut down on non-essential travel to minimise fuel usage.
Rationing using QR code was successful in curbing the problem when the supplies ran dry due to forex shortage during the 2022 economic crisis, making it difficult to pay for the shipments.
An Indian credit line through the Lanka Indian Oil Corporation (LIOC), the company's Sri Lanka operation, helped diffuse tensions. That year, between March and July, over 25 people died due to exhaustion after spending long hours in fuel queues.
Starting February 28, the US and Israel have launched a massive joint attack on Iran and with Iran's retaliation, it has extended to the entire Gulf region. Iranian strikes in Hormuz have affected maritime traffic in the strait, which is crucial for global supply chains for crude and oil.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Trump pauses Project Freedom, claims great progress for final agreement with Iran
Washington (PTI): President Donald Trump has suspended “Project Freedom,” to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, claiming progress in negotiations with Iran toward an agreement to end the war.
In a post on Truth Social on Tuesday, Trump said, “Great progress has been made toward a complete and final agreement with representatives of Iran.”
“Based on the request of Pakistan and other Countries, the tremendous Military Success that we have had during the Campaign against the Country of Iran and, additionally, the fact that Great Progress has been made toward a Complete and Final Agreement with Representatives of Iran, we have mutually agreed that, while the Blockade will remain in full force and effect, Project Freedom (The Movement of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz) will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the Agreement can be finalized and signed," Trump said.
Project Freedom was launched on Monday to escort ships, stranded due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, out to safety. Trump had announced the operation on Sunday and the US Central Command began implementing it the next day.
However, the Project led to friction in the vicinity of the narrow seaway, a key route for transporting one-fifth of the global oil supplies, with the UAE claiming that its ships were attacked by Iran. The US also claimed to have destroyed several Iranian small boats.
Trump’s statement on Truth Social came hours after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that Operation Epic Fury, launched on February 28, had concluded as its objectives have been achieved.
"Operation Epic Fury is concluded. We achieved the objectives of that operation. We're not cheering for an additional situation to occur. We would prefer the path of peace. What @POTUS would prefer is a deal... that is, so far, not the route that Iran has chosen," Rubio told a press conference at the White House on Tuesday.
On Project Freedom, Rubio said the goal was to rescue almost 23,000 civilians from 87 different countries who were trapped inside the Persian Gulf and left for dead by the Iranian regime.
"This is not an offensive operation. This is a defensive operation, and what that means is very simple: there’s no shooting unless we're shot at first. We’re not attacking them, but if they're attacking us or they’re attacking a ship, you need to respond to that," Rubio said.
