With FIFA reeling from the most damaging corruption crisis in its 111-year history, (14 FIFA officials and marketing executives were indicted by US justice authorities in May over a $150 million bribery scandal), Sepp Blatter denied that FIFA was corrupt to the core.
Britain has ordered additional Saab-built Giraffe AMB radars to bolster ground-based air defenses on the Falkland Islands against a possible future threat from Argentina, reports Defense News. The Swedish company announced on 24 August that it had received an order valued at 610 Swedish krona million ($74 million dollars) from the UK Ministry of Defense for the supply of new radars and the upgrade of existing systems.
Brazil's government announced on Monday it will slash the number of ministries and reduce its spending, in an effort to show commitment to austerity that could be politically costly for President Dilma Rousseff.
Falkland Oil & Gas Ltd told investors that drilling of the deep water Humpback exploration well in South Falkland basin has run into delays. They were described as ‘unforeseen equipment and operational issues’ and it has added just over a month to the schedule – to about 100 days from 65 planned days – so the well results are now expected during September.
Deteriorating conditions in Venezuela are causing increasing numbers of Cuban medical personnel working there to immigrate to the United States under a special US program launched in 2006 that expedites their applications.
Brazilian Vice President Michel Temer has decided to drop his role as day-to-day political coordinator in Congress for President Dilma Rousseff but is not leaving her government, two sources in the administration said on Monday.
The vice-president of Brazil’s TSE electoral authority has asked for an investigation of President Dilma Rousseff’s 2014 re-election campaign, citing evidence that it may have been financed with money from a corruption scheme at state-run oil firm Petrobras.
Stock markets around Latin America posted heavy losses Monday as plunging Chinese shares unleashed fresh turmoil on global markets. In Brazil, home to the region's largest stock exchange, the IBOVESPA index in Sao Paulo closed down 3.03%, after plunging 6.49% in opening trade.
Shares in London and elsewhere in Europe rebounded at the start of trading on Tuesday, despite another night of steep falls for the Chinese stock market. The FTSE 100 rose 1.6% to 5,994.11, while Germany's Dax and Paris Cac were both up about 1.4%. The gains came after Chinese stocks continued their run of big losses.
The British embassy in Iran has reopened, nearly four years after it was closed. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond attended a ceremony on Sunday in Teheran with Iranian diplomats to mark the reopening while Iran has also reopened its embassy in London.