
Seven sitting heads of government and one president-elect from Latin America and the Caribbean shared the stage in Panama on Wednesday to call for deeper regional integration, an increasingly rare show of cross-ideological alignment in a polarized region. The message was delivered at the International Economic Forum Latin America and the Caribbean, backed by CAF and designed as a high-level convening point for governments, business leaders and multilaterals.

Uruguay’s Rural Association (ARU) is warning that the slide in the U.S. dollar is pushing the farm sector into a “critical situation,” arguing that while a stronger peso may feel beneficial for people paid in local currency, the broader impact can be job losses in export-oriented activities.

Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro has revived his sharpest anti-Trump rhetoric days before a planned meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, calling on Washington to “return” Nicolás Maduro so he can be tried in Venezuela rather than in U.S. courts.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that Washington is not considering “any military action” in Venezuela, as he testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to outline the Trump administration’s strategy following the capture of former president Nicolás Maduro earlier this month.

Venezuela’s proposed hydrocarbons law overhaul is under intense legislative scrutiny, with more than 80 amendments submitted by lawmakers, legal experts and energy sector associations ahead of a planned final vote, Reuters reported Tuesday.

The United States is preparing a general licence to ease sanctions on Venezuela’s energy sector, aiming to facilitate an estimated $2 billion oil supply deal between Caracas and Washington, U.S. government sources told Reuters on Tuesday. The move is part of a strategic shift in U.S. policy after the Jan. 3 capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro by U.S. forces.

Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Chile’s president-elect José Antonio Kast held their first bilateral meeting in Panama on Tuesday, shortly after arriving for the International Economic Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean — an event promoted by organizers and regional media as a “Latin Davos.”

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will tell the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday that Washington is prepared to “use force” again in Venezuela if it determines that acting president Delcy Rodríguez is not cooperating “to the level” expected by President Donald Trump’s administration, according to a draft of his prepared remarks cited by media.

The Falkland Islands Legislative Assembly marked Holocaust Memorial Day on 27 January, joining people and governments worldwide in a statement centered on remembrance and renewed vigilance against hatred and discrimination.

New Delhi and Brussels announced on Tuesday that they had concluded the largest bilateral trade deal in their histories after almost two decades of negotiations. The pact links India’s 1.4 billion-person economy with the 27-nation European Union and, according to both sides, will create a free-trade zone for around 2 billion consumers and sharply lower tariffs and other barriers that have long hindered commerce between the two regions.