Latin America

• Tuesday, April 24th 2012 - 01:59 UTC

  Chile begins implementing education reforms demanded by massive student protests

  

  The state, not banks, are to fund higher education scholarships through the creation of a new specialized government agency, Chile’s Education minister, Harald Beyer, announced in a press conference at La Moneda on Monday.

• Tuesday, April 24th 2012 - 01:51 UTC

  Colombia offers to mediate in the YPF conflict between Argentina and Spain

  

  Colombia is available to mediate between Spain and Argentina to find a solution to the dispute over the seizure of YPF from Repsol, said Colombian Vice-president Angelino Garzón.

• Tuesday, April 24th 2012 - 01:23 UTC

  Spain’s Repsol threatens companies investing in seized YPF with legal actions

  

  Spain’s main oil corporation Repsol warned it could take legal action against companies that invest in YPF after Argentina seized control of the Spanish company's energy unit last week.

• Tuesday, April 24th 2012 - 01:09 UTC

  Setback for Spain: EU confirms trade talks with Mercosur, including Argentina

  

  A member of the European Union assured it is not possible to negotiate an agreement between the EU and Mercosur without Argentina, as the Spanish Government planned after the country’s decision to expropriate YPF.

• Tuesday, April 24th 2012 - 00:58 UTC

  Chavez blasts “psychological rumours warfare” and says on Thursday he returns to Venezuela

  

  A healthy-sounding President Hugo Chávez called Venezuelan state television from Cuba on Monday to dispel rumours fanned by a nine-day silence that he had died undergoing cancer treatment at a hospital in Havana.

• Monday, April 23rd 2012 - 09:34 UTC

  Parlatino supports Argentine decision, blasts EU for threatening with reprisals

  

  The Standing Committee from the Latin American parliament, Parlatino, approved a resolution in support of the Argentine government decision to seize a majority stake in YPF from Spain’s Repsol, according to a release made public over the weekend.

• Saturday, April 21st 2012 - 07:25 UTC

  Peru gives conditional approval to major controversial mining project

  

  Peruvian President Ollanta Humala said on Friday that US-based Newmont Mining should carry out a more ambitious environmental mitigation plan if it hopes to build its 4.8 billion dollars Conga gold mine project.

• Saturday, April 21st 2012 - 03:51 UTC

  Brazil will continue to intervene in support of industry and depressing its currency

  

  Brazilian Finance minister Guido Mantega said on Friday that IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde makes a mistake in recommending emerging countries not to intervene in the money exchange markets to counter the strong devaluation of currencies from the rich countries.

• Friday, April 20th 2012 - 00:24 UTC

  Cristina Fernandez “not concerned” about international reaction to YPF takeover

  

  The government of President Cristina Fernandez is “not concerned” about the escalade of international criticism following the announced nationalization of the oil company YPF, and rules “thinking in Argentina not in Spain or the US”, said two cabinet members.

• Thursday, April 19th 2012 - 21:21 UTC

  “President Rajoy, in Colombia we don’t expropriate, we welcome foreign investment”

  

  Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos welcomed Spanish corporations and guaranteed his visiting Spanish peer Mariano Rajoy that in Colombia there will be no surprises because the country follows the rules of the game: “President Rajoy: here we don’t expropriate”.