Sri Lankan leader admits mistakes led to economic crisis

By KRISHAN FRANCIS and BHARATHA MALLAWARACHI
Associated Press

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka’s president has acknowledged that he made mistakes that led to the country’s worst economic crisis in decades and pledged to correct them. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa made the admission while speaking to 17 new Cabinet ministers he appointed Monday as he and his powerful family seek to resolve a political crisis resulting from the country’s dire economic state. Sri Lanka is on the brink of bankruptcy, with nearly $7 billion of its total $25 billion in foreign debt due for repayment this year. A severe shortage of foreign exchange has meant people have had to endure months of shortages of food, cooking gas, fuel and medicine.