Sri Lanka's president says he has asked Vladimir Putin of Russia to help his poor country import fuel as it faces its worst economic crisis since independence from Britain in 1948. This was reported by the BBC.
Gotabaya Rajapaksa said he had a "very productive" conversation with Putin.
This came after Sri Lanka's energy minister warned over the weekend that the country might soon run out of gasoline.
On Wednesday, hundreds of people took to the streets of the capital Colombo to protest against the government.
"I have requested credit support for fuel imports," Rajapaksa wrote on Twitter, referring to his conversation with the Russian leader.
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— Gotabaya Rajapaksa (@GotabayaR) July 6, 2022
Had a very productive telecon with the #Russia President, Vladimir Putin. While thanking him for all the support extended by his gvt to overcome the challenges of the past, I requested an offer of credit support to import fuel to #lka in defeating the current econ challenges.
Rajapaksa also said he had "humbly asked" for flights between Moscow and Colombo to resume after Russian carrier Aeroflot suspended flights last month.
"We unanimously agreed that strengthening bilateral relations in sectors such as tourism, trade and culture was paramount to strengthening the friendship between our two countries," he added.
The country has already been buying oil from Russia in recent months to increase fuel supplies during the crisis, and the government has signaled that it is willing to buy more.
Attempts by Sri Lanka's president to resolve the country's worst economic crisis in more than 70 years, including securing financial support from India and China, have so far failed to end shortages of fuel, electricity, food and other basic necessities.
On Sunday, Energy Minister Kanchan Wijesekera said the country had less than a day's worth of gasoline left in normal demand.
Last week, authorities suspended gasoline and diesel sales for secondary vehicles in an attempt to conserve dwindling fuel supplies.
A day earlier Wednesday, hundreds of protesters gathered outside parliament in Colombo to begin what they called a "last ditch effort" to topple the Rajapaksa government.
