Stories for April 12th 2010
Castro brothers against opening Cuba, because that’s the end of them, claims Clinton
The Cuban brothers Fidel and Raúl Castro do not want to normalize ties with Washington because they would “lose their excuses” for the country's lack of development and openness, said US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaking at the University of Louisville in Kentucky.
Mercosur and EU trade negotiators must “deliver” before May summit
Mercosur is waiting for “dialogue contributions” from the European Union to decide on negotiations for a political and commercial agreement with the EU. Brussels is expected to make its move at the end of April on time for a formal launching in May of the decade-long delayed but very much needed block to block talks.
Falkland Islands Tourist Board Launches Accommodation Guide
The Falkland Islands Tourist Board this week launched a comprehensive new accommodation guide, as part of an ongoing strategy to develop and grow the land-based sector of the Falkland Islands tourism industry.
Rio do Janerio’s mud slides death toll could reach 400; focus on “responsibility”
While rescuers raced against time amid fading hopes of finding survivors of a huge mudslide in the Rio do Janeiro area with over 400 people now feared dead in some of the worst flooding to swamp Brazil in decades, focus has turned on responsibility for the magnitude of the catastrophe.
Argentine Central Bank props the Peso with Euro operations
Argentina has been forced to buy Euros in the local market to control the exchange rate of the US dollar relative to the Peso in a complicated move but necessary to avoid the risk of having additional Central Bank funds seized in New York.
Market test for Greece’s Euro zone and IMF 51 billion USD “soft” loan aid
European finance officials agreed Sunday to make an estimated 41 billion US dollars in loans available to Greece to help fight the threat of default. The loans would be charged at below-market rates to enable Athens to keep its borrowing costs down as it struggles to raise money to finance its runaway public debt.
Chilean Army de-mining fields bordering the Magellan Strait
Chile’s Army demining team announced last week the clearance of 5.799 mines in the north of Tierra del Fuego next to the so called Primera Angostura (First Narrow) of the Magellan Strait.
Living myth Fidel Castro, “a man with a superior intellect by heartless”
Dissident Cuban neurosurgeon Hilda Molina, now living in Argentina, said in an interview that Fidel Castro once felt “a very marked inclination” towards her.
Kissinger accused of turning blind eye to Latam military regimes political killings
Henry Kissinger while United States Secretary of State, halted a plan to warn South American military regimes against international political assassinations such as those involving the 1976 death in Washington of former Chilean minister Orlando Letelier, a document shows.
Hollywood stars support natural park conservation project in Ecuador
Hollywood stars Leonardo Di Caprio and Glenn Close are willing to support an environment-conservation project in Ecuador that would prevent the extraction of 850 million barrels of oil from the Amazon.
