Ten hectic days ahead for Argentina since come 30 July and no agreement has been reached at the New York court of Federal Judge Thomas Griesa, (full payment plus accrued interests to holdout speculative funds) the country would be forced to a second default in twelve years with all the political consequences for Cristina Fernandez and Mercosur.
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos opened a new session of Congress on Sunday, calling on lawmakers to back government efforts to strike a peace deal with the FARC rebels to end 50 years of war. Members of Congress were sworn in during the ceremony in central Bogota.
President Jose Mujica underlined the strong identity of Uruguay with the Paraguayan people, but also recalled no the “immense debt that we never settled or will we ever be able to settle for having participated in the War of the Triple Alliance”.
Guyana’s offshore exploration for oil in areas being contested by neighboring Venezuela is being faced with setbacks. Natural Resources and Environment Minister Robert Persaud in making the revelation said this is linked to the expulsion and temporary seizure of the Malaysian seismic research vessel, RV Teknik Perdana, by Venezuela’s Navy last year.
President Cristina Fernández used her Twitter account on Sunday to comment on last week’s heavy agenda with the visit of Russia’s and China’s presidents and the BRICS-UNASUR summit in Brazil. “It has been an important week for Argentina,” she said.
Daniel Filmus head of the Argentine Foreign ministry office on Issues related to the Question of Malvinas, underlined the support from China to Argentina' sovereignty claim over the disputed Islands, which was “clearly expressed” in a joint declaration signed by Presidents Cristina Fernandez and Xi Jinping, currently on a visit to several Latin American countries.
By Gwynne Dyer - Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, said something cryptic last Friday, shortly after the Israelis began their latest round of attacks on the Gaza Strip. Condemning Hamas’ conditions for accepting a ceasefire as “exaggerated and unnecessary,” he offered his condolences “ to the families of the martyrs in Gaza who are fuel to those who trade in war. I oppose these traders, on both sides.”
Ceremonies have been held in Germany to mark the 70th anniversary of a failed 20 July 1944 attempt by military officers to kill Adolf Hitler. The conspirators are now regarded as German patriots for their actions.