Stories for December 8th 2017

Friday, December 8th 2017 - 21:13 UTC
Breakthrough in Brexit negotiations; Juncker calls it a compromise

The European Commission said on Friday enough progress had been made in Brexit negotiations with Britain to allow a second phase of talks on future relations to begin, ending an impasse over the status of the Irish border.
Friday, December 8th 2017 - 14:47 UTC
Battle Day marked in the Falkland Islands 103 years on

Residents of the Falkland Islands annually mark one of the early major naval battles of the First World War, which took place off the coast of the Islands. This year the event was commemorated with a traditional parade, made up of Members of the Falkland Islands Defence Force.
Friday, December 8th 2017 - 08:35 UTC
Judge indicts Cristina Fernandez for treason and puts Timerman under house arrest

A federal judge in Argentina indicted former President Cristina Fernandez for treason and asked for her arrest for allegedly covering up Iran’s possible role in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center that killed 85 people and injured hundreds, a court ruling said.
Friday, December 8th 2017 - 08:30 UTC
Brexit minister admits to Parliament there are no impact assessments for the UK economy

There were calls for David Davis to resign as Brexit Secretary and face investigation for contempt of Parliament, after he admitted that the UK Government has produced no impact assessments on the effect of Brexit on different sectors of the UK economy.
Friday, December 8th 2017 - 08:20 UTC
Falklands/Buenos Aires Ezeiza airport direct flight by a RAF Voyager transport

A RAF Voyager transport, in a direct link from MPA in the Falkland Islands landed on Thursday morning at Ezeiza airport in Buenos Aires with 25 members of the HMS Protector crew, on time to catch a midday British Airways flight to London. It has been decades since an RAF unit lands in the Argentine capital international airport.
Friday, December 8th 2017 - 08:15 UTC
Falklands Code of Practice covers much of ILO Work in Fishing Convention

A convention which has been described as opening up a new era for millions of fishermen worldwide will have some impact on fishermen working in the Falkland Islands' waters. Director of Natural Resources John Barton said that he thought some of the articles of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Work in Fishing Convention 2007 would be enshrined into Falklands licensing conditions make them more robust.
Friday, December 8th 2017 - 07:49 UTC
Monsanto confident a soy seed patent dispute in Brazil will uphold

U.S. seeds company Monsanto Co is confident Brazilian courts will uphold its Intacta RR2 PRO soy seed patent despite a challenge from grain growers in the state of Mato Grosso, the company’s chief of South American operations said this week.
Friday, December 8th 2017 - 06:31 UTC
Falklands promotes fish in China from Fortuna's new processing plant in Stanley

Products from the Falkland Islands Fish Company, the trading name of Fortuna Ltd’s new Stanley fish processing plant, were featured recently in China and attracted favorable attention from trade media.
Friday, December 8th 2017 - 06:18 UTC
Chinese government oil company suing Venezuela's PDVSA in US courts

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., the state-controlled oil company, is suing Petroleos de Venezuela SA in U.S. courts for unpaid bills. Sinopec, as the Chinese company is known, also filed a request for arbitration against PDVSA at the International Chamber of Commerce, as it alleges damages of at least $23.7 million, according to court papers.
Friday, December 8th 2017 - 01:26 UTC
UN Environment Assembly pledges to stop plastics seeping into the oceans

The world's environment ministers have pledged to stop plastics seeping into the planet's oceans in a step “towards a pollution-free planet”. Delegates at the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) in Nairobi, Kenya, have called for a radical change in how goods are consumed and produced to tackle the world's rubbish problem.