LANKA PARLIAMENT DISSOLVED, PREZ CALLS FOR SNAP POLLSri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Monday dissolved Parliament sixmonths ahead of its schedule and called for a snap election on April 25.He signed the gazette notification dissolving Parliament from midnight, theGovernment Printers Department said. The current Parliament was appointed onSeptember 1, 2015. According to the notification, elections will be held onApril 25 and the new Parliament will have its first session on May 14.Parties and independent candidates can file nominations between March 12 and19.BRITAIN VOWS 'HARD BARGAIN' IN LIST OF DEMANDS FOR U.S. TRADE DEALBritain on Monday unveiled its mandate for trade talks with the UnitedStates, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowing to drive a hard bargain innegotiations that are set to test the two allies' "special relationship".After leaving the European Union in January, Mr. Johnson wants to pursue atrade deal with Washington to try not only to champion Britain's newindependence, but also to put pressure on the bloc in separate talks on afuture relationship.As a negotiating team heads to Brussels to start those discussions, thegovernment set out its mandate for talks with the United States, warningthat London would walk away if its demands are not met.Britain said it wanted to achieve "huge gains" by removing barriers totrade, but that its much-loved National Health Service (NHS) would not be onthe table in talks, and that its food standards would be maintained.That could set the two sides on a collision course, putting additionalpressure on a relationship already strained by London's decision to allowChina's Huawei a limited role in its 5G mobile network, as well as aproposed digital services tax."We have the best negotiators in the business and of course, we're going todrive a hard bargain to boost British industry," Mr. Johnson said. "Mostimportantly, this transatlantic trade deal will reflect the unique closenessof our two great nations."Jeff Emerson, spokesman for the U.S. Trade Representative's Office, saidWashington was reviewing Britain's negotiating objectives and was lookingforward to starting talks."The United States remains committed to negotiating an ambitious tradeagreement with the United Kingdom that is good for both countries," he said.