Stories for November 9th 2009
Lula da Silva: “I preferred to give Paraguay a chance to develop”
A country with the size of Brazil can’t fight with Paraguay, said Brazilian president Lula da Silva justifying the Itaipu hydroelectric energy agreement signed last July with his Paraguayan counterpart Fernando Lugo in Asuncion.
He added, “I preferred to give a country like Paraguay the chance to develop”.
Falklands’ new Legislative Assembly allocates portfolios
The newly elected Falkland Islands Legislative Assembly announced Monday the portfolio allocations among its new members and on Tuesday will elect three of their number to sit on the Executive Council.
Latinamerican media blasts populist regimes for trying to gag press critics
Populist leaders in Latin America increasingly use legal and political means to silence critics in the media, according to Enrique Santos Calderón, president of the Inter American Press Association (IAPA). Tactics include revoking broadcast licenses, fostering hostility toward journalists, and giving a free hand to government supporters who have attacked broadcast stations, newsrooms and printing plants.
Italian film attempts balanced approach to Falklands/Malvinas dispute
The Falklands/Malvinas are again the motive of a film this time by an Italian director and in the form of a documentary which tries to give a bigger picture of the issue, including Patagonia’s emptiness and the fact Falkland families have been living in the Islands for over 150 years.
First recorded case of H1N1 flu transmitted to cat by pet’s owner
A 13 year old cat came down with the H1N1 virus flu in the state of Iowa, in the US Mid West, the first case so far proved and evidence that humans with the flu virus can spread it to pets.
Amorim and Taiana meet to address “trade difficulties”
Brazilian Foreign Affairs minister Celso Amorim will receive Monday in Rio do Janeiro his Argentine counterpart Jorge Taiana to discuss several issues of the “bilateral agenda” including, according to Argentine diplomatic sources the ongoing “trade differences”.
G-20 pledged to maintain economic stimulus and asked for IMF monitoring
Finance ministers from the Group of 20 industrialized and emerging market economies pledged to maintain economic stimulus measures until recovery from the global crisis is assured and asked the IMF to assess whether countries were on track for delivering strong, sustainable, and balanced growth to avoid future problems.
Gorbachev urges Obama to withdraw from Afghanistan
Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has urged the United States to withdraw all its military forces from Afghanistan. Gorbachev told CNN in an interview on Sunday that “withdrawal from Afghanistan should be the goal.”
Twenty years later a “divisive line” exists between Russia and the West
Twenty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall a “divisive line” exists between Russia and the West because of mistakes committed following the end of the Cold War, regrets former Soviet Union leader Mijail Gorbachev in an interview with the Spanish newspaper El País.
World leaders join thousands to celebrate fall of Berlin Wall 20 years ago
World leaders are due to join thousands of people Monday to mark 20 years since the Berlin Wall's fall, an event that paved the way for the end of the Cold War. The main celebrations in the city will be at the Brandenburg Gate - the symbol of German reunification in 1990.
