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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, April 8th 2026 - 10:31 UTC

Chile

  • Monday, March 23rd 2026 - 03:49 UTC

    Chile: Kast announces “difficult decisions” and rules out populist responses to oil crisis

    Kast defined his administration as a “government of Chile” focused on what he called “the culture of work done well” and restoring each citizen's “basic duties.”

    Chilean President José Antonio Kast said he found the country “worse than he imagined” and warned his government will take unpopular adjustment measures, in an interview published on Saturday by the newspaper La Tercera, the first he has given since taking office on March 11.

  • Thursday, March 19th 2026 - 00:50 UTC

    UK reaffirms longstanding relation with Chile and continued partnership for the future

    Chilean president Kast with UK Foreign Office minister for Latin America and the Caribbean, Chris Elmore

    The United Kingdom reaffirmed its intention to deepen its relationship with Chile across trade, critical minerals, energy, shipbuilding and scientific cooperation, according to a statement released by the UK Foreign Office following the inauguration of President José Antonio Kast in Santiago.

  • Tuesday, March 17th 2026 - 23:24 UTC

    Kast launches border barriers in northern Chile and hardens migration agenda

    Photo: AP/Esteban Felix

    Chilean President José Antonio Kast on Monday launched the border control works he had promised during the campaign, starting in Chacalluta in the Arica and Parinacota region, in an early sign that migration and security will be among the defining priorities of his administration. According to Chile’s presidency, Kast inspected the works at the frontier and highlighted the Army’s deployment to secure the area.

  • Friday, March 13th 2026 - 02:57 UTC

    Thousands of Venezuelans in Santiago de Chile rally behind María Corina Machado

    Chile hosts one of the largest Venezuelan communities in the region, and Machado’s presence came amid a politically sensitive debate over migration, security and legal status

    Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado drew thousands of supporters to central Santiago on Thursday in the largest public demonstration she has led since leaving Venezuela in late 2025. The gathering, held between Paseo Bulnes and Parque Almagro, exceeded initial expectations and became one of the most visible displays of the Venezuelan diaspora in Chile in recent years. According to estimates by Carabineros cited by Chilean and Spanish media, turnout ranged between 16,000 and 17,000 people.

  • Thursday, March 12th 2026 - 10:45 UTC

    Chile's new era with Kast in power

    The new president’s arrival marks Chile’s sharpest move to the right since the end of the dictatorship. Photo: Elvis González/EFE

    Chile entered a new political phase on Wednesday with the inauguration of José Antonio Kast, the most conservative figure to reach La Moneda since the return to democracy. Kast was sworn in at Congress in Valparaíso and then moved to the presidential palace, where he defended the idea of an “emergency government” and said he was receiving “a country in worse conditions than we could have imagined.”

  • Wednesday, March 11th 2026 - 20:19 UTC

    Chile: José Antonio Kast sworn in as president in conservative shift after Boric

    Kast, 60, takes office after his landslide victory in the December 2025 runoff against Jeannette Jara, in an election shaped by concerns over crime, irregular migration and the economy

    José Antonio Kast was sworn in as Chile’s president on Wednesday in a ceremony at the National Congress in Valparaíso, in a transfer of power that confirmed the country’s sharpest shift to the right since the return to democracy in 1990. Senate President Paulina Núñez administered the oath and placed the presidential sash on him, formalizing the handover from Gabriel Boric.

  • Wednesday, March 11th 2026 - 04:15 UTC

    Boric leaves office defending his record and acknowledging mistakes

    “I leave with my head held high and my hands clean,” Boric said in a live message from La Moneda palace on the night of March 10

    In his final national address before handing the presidential sash to José Antonio Kast on Wednesday, Chilean President Gabriel Boric defended his government’s record, highlighted progress in security, pensions and healthcare, and accepted political responsibility for two of the most damaging episodes of the final stretch of his administration: the handling of the Monsalve case and the failed purchase of former President Salvador Allende’s house.

  • Wednesday, March 11th 2026 - 04:03 UTC

    Chile: Kast arrives at La Moneda with a 90-day plan focused on security, fiscal cuts and migration

    Kast’s immediate test will be managing high expectations. A Cadem poll released in early March found that 57% of respondents believed Chile would do well under his administration

    José Antonio Kast will be sworn in as Chile’s president on Wednesday with a pledge to lead an “emergency government” focused on security, the economy and migration control, as he seeks to turn his electoral mandate into early, visible action. His team has drafted a first 90-day roadmap combining administrative measures, regulatory changes and an initial batch of bills meant to show movement from the outset.

  • Wednesday, March 11th 2026 - 03:55 UTC

    Lula withdraws from Kast inauguration amid presence of Flávio Bolsonaro

    The reversal came hours after it emerged that Flávio Bolsonaro, a likely challenger to Lula in October’s presidential election, would attend the event as a guest

    Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has canceled a planned trip to Chile to attend José Antonio Kast’s inauguration on Wednesday and will instead be represented at the ceremony by Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira. Brazilian officials said the change was due to “scheduling reasons.”

  • Wednesday, March 11th 2026 - 03:49 UTC

    María Corina Machado arrives in Chile for Kast’s inauguration and meeting with Venezuelan migrants

    Beyond attending the inauguration, Machado has called Venezuelans in Chile to a Thursday afternoon gathering at Paseo Bulnes in downtown Santiago

    Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado has arrived in Chile to attend Wednesday’s ceremony in which Gabriel Boric will hand over the presidency to José Antonio Kast, in a visit that also includes an event with Venezuelan residents in Santiago and several public appearances in the capital. She is among the international guests invited to the transfer of power, where Kast will formally take office at Congress in Valparaíso.