Stories for April 14th 2015

Tuesday, April 14th 2015 - 22:39 UTC
UN extends to actor Daniel Craig “licence to save” as first advocate for elimination of landmines

The United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced on Tuesday the designation of renowned actor Daniel Craig as the first UN Global Advocate for the Elimination of Mines and Explosive Hazards. In a brief ceremony held at UN Headquarters, the Secretary-General thanked Mr. Craig for his commitment to support the UN’s vision of a world free from the threat of landmines and explosive remnants of war.
Tuesday, April 14th 2015 - 18:35 UTC
China's exports/imports fall in March; trade surplus lowest in 13 years

China's monthly trade data shows exports fell in March from a year ago by 14.6% in Yuan terms, compared to expectations for a rise of more than 8%. Imports meanwhile fell 12.3% in Yuan terms compared to forecasts for a fall of more than 11%.
Tuesday, April 14th 2015 - 11:49 UTC
Falklands oil explorers replace costly drilling in the south-east basin

Three oil explorers drilling in the Falkland Islands, including Houston based Noble Energy have shelved plans to drill a second well in the south and east Falklands following the steep drop in oil prices, one of the partners said on Monday. Partners, which also include London-listed Falkland Oil and Gas (FOGL) and Edison International, said they would continue drilling in other parts of the region.
Tuesday, April 14th 2015 - 11:42 UTC
Argentina's Chief Justice urges “end to impunity” and peoples' frustration

Argentina's Chief Justice Ricardo Lorenzetti called on the judges and prosecutors to make a greater effort towards a transparent society and urged for an “end to impunity” and peoples' frustrations with the court system. He was speaking in reference to the ongoing investigation into special prosecutor's Alberto Nisman's death on 18 January.
Tuesday, April 14th 2015 - 11:29 UTC
Cuban-American Senator Rubio launches 2016 campaign for the White House

US Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio launched his presidential campaign at a rally on Monday in Miami, calling for a new era of American leadership that is not “stuck in the 20th century.”
Tuesday, April 14th 2015 - 11:19 UTC
Germany's greatest post WWII writer and Nobel Prize winner dies at 87

German novelist Günter Grass, the Nobel Prize-winning author of “The Tin Drum”, an epic treatment of the Nazi era, on Monday at the age of 87, his publishers said. A broad-shouldered man with a drooping mustache, Grass spurned the German tradition of keeping a cool intellectual distance, insisting that a writer's duty was to be at the frontline of moral and political debate.
Tuesday, April 14th 2015 - 10:03 UTC
Intellectual icon of Latin America's left in the seventies and eighties dies in Montevideo

Uruguayan author Eduardo Galeano, whose The Open Veins of Latin America became a classic text for the left in the region and propelled the author to fame, died on Monday at age 74. Galeano had been ill with lung cancer for several months.
Tuesday, April 14th 2015 - 09:39 UTC
Falklands Argos in farm-out agreement with Noble Energy to drill exploratory well

Noble Energy announced Monday that it has acquired additional acres offshore the Falkland Islands and plans to start drilling, despite opposition from Argentina’s government. The Houston-based oil company now holds a 75% interest in a license in the North Falkland Basin from Argos Resources Limited, an oil and gas exploration company based in the Falkland Islands.