Sri Lanka's ousted PM says US, Japan freeze aid over political crisis

Ousted Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe

The United States and Japan have frozen more than a billion dollars of development aid, according to deposed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Mr Wickremesinghe said his abrupt dismissal raised doubts about the future of democracy in the island. The move to hold back project financing, along with the EU's warning it could withdraw duty-free concessions for Sri Lankan exports if it didn't stick to commitments on national reconciliation, will further strain the economy, Wickremesinghe told Reuters.

President Maithripala Sirisena fired him last month after months of tensions within the government and appointed Mahinda Rajapaksa as premier in a shock move that has plunged the nation into a political crisis. Rajapaksa is a former president.