Stories for 2026

Tuesday, June 30th 2026 - 07:41 UTC
Venezuela's María Corina Machado accuses the government of blocking her return after the earthquake

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado on Monday accused the government of acting President Delcy Rodríguez of closing the country's airspace to prevent her return, as Venezuela copes with the emergency caused by the June 24 twin earthquake, which has left more than 1,700 dead and some 5,000 injured. “They want to block my return to Venezuela,” Machado said in a video posted on social media, in which she said she was in Panama.
Tuesday, June 30th 2026 - 07:35 UTC
Mexican rescuers in Venezuela call it one of the largest tragedies they have faced

Rescuers from the Mexican Army's Emergency Response Battalion (BAE), considered among the most experienced in the world in natural disasters, say the earthquake that devastated north-central Venezuela is “one of the largest tragedies” they have attended, above all because of the scale of the damage. The team is working in the coastal state of La Guaira, the hardest-hit area, where the official toll exceeded 1,700 dead on Monday.
Monday, June 29th 2026 - 08:30 UTC
Argentina's Pacific-pact bid would make it a trade partner of the UK, raising a Falklands dilemma

Argentina's request to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) has reopened a question over its sovereignty claim to the Falklands, since the United Kingdom is a full member of that agreement. If it goes ahead, it would be the first trade pact of this magnitude, since the 1982 war, in which Argentina would share partner status with London outside traditional multilateral frameworks such as the United Nations or the World Trade Organization.
Monday, June 29th 2026 - 08:24 UTC
Milei brings open disputes with Brazil to a Mercosur summit focused on trade deals

Argentine President Javier Milei will take part on Monday and Tuesday in the Mercosur summit of heads of state in Asunción, a meeting whose trade agenda —led by the agreement with the European Union— will coexist with open political tensions with Brazil that threaten to overshadow the bloc's progress. Paraguay's Foreign Minister, Rubén Ramírez, confirmed the presence of seven leaders, among them the presidents of Chile, José Antonio Kast, and Ecuador, Daniel Noboa.
Monday, June 29th 2026 - 06:53 UTC
Russia says it is developing AI-based air defense systems, expects results in November

Russia is developing new air defense systems based on artificial intelligence technologies, the country's defense minister, Andrei Belousov, announced on Monday. The official said it was one of the priority projects the country aims to complete before the end of the year, against the backdrop of mounting Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian territory.
Sunday, June 28th 2026 - 20:51 UTC
Why Venezuela's earthquake was so deadly: shallow, powerful and just seconds apart

The combination of two powerful, very shallow earthquakes just 39 seconds apart explains much of the devastation left by Wednesday's earthquake in north-central Venezuela, where the latest official toll exceeds 1,450 dead and 3,150 injured. The satellite images that have gradually emerged confirm a trail of collapsed buildings along the coast, the most densely populated and hardest-hit area.
Sunday, June 28th 2026 - 20:42 UTC
Milei's government seeks to close a political crisis after cabinet chief Adorni resigns

The resignation of Manuel Adorni as cabinet chief of the Argentine government represents an attempt by President Javier Milei to close a political crisis that dominated the public agenda for more than four months, though analysts warn that the impact on the government's credibility will persist as the judicial investigation into the former official's alleged illicit enrichment advances. Adorni, who denies any act of corruption, submitted his resignation on Saturday in a letter released on the social network X.
Sunday, June 28th 2026 - 20:31 UTC
Collapsed hospitals and morgues raise health fears in Venezuela's earthquake zone

The emergency caused by the twin earthquake that struck north-central Venezuela on Wednesday is beginning to turn into a health risk, given the bodies that remain under the rubble and the collapse of hospitals and morgues in the worst-hit areas, particularly the coastal state of La Guaira. Authorities this weekend raised the toll to at least 1,450 dead and some 3,150 injured, a figure they warned would keep rising.
Saturday, June 27th 2026 - 09:45 UTC
UK sends a 68-strong search and rescue team and £2 million in aid to Venezuela

The United Kingdom on Friday deployed a specialist search and rescue team of 68 people and announced an initial £2 million (about $2.7 million) in humanitarian funding to support the response to the earthquakes that devastated north-central Venezuela, where the latest official toll exceeds 580 dead and 2,900 injured.
Saturday, June 27th 2026 - 09:43 UTC
Repsol, Ecopetrol and 17 other oil firms cleared for Brazil's next pre-salt auction

Nineteen oil companies, among them Spain's Repsol and Colombia's Ecopetrol, have been cleared to bid in the upcoming auction of licenses to partner with the Brazilian State in the exploitation of hydrocarbons in the pre-salt, the country's main crude reserve. The list was released on Friday by the National Agency for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP), following its publication in the Official Gazette.