
Chile's President Sebastián Piñera accepted on Tuesday the resignation of the Ambassador in Argentina, Miguel Otero Lathrop, who had assured during an interview last Sunday that most Chileans did not suffer Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship. His comments triggered a barrage of criticisms both in Chile and Argentina.

The Organization of American States (OAS) ratified support of the Argentine demand to seek dialogue with the United Kingdom in order to find a peaceful and definitive solution to the ‘colonialism situation’ of the Malvinas Islands, South Georgia, and South Sandwich and the surrounding maritime areas.

British Prime Minister David Cameron reiterated the support of his government for the freedom and self determination of the Falkland Islands, in a letter addressed to members of the Islands’ Legislative Assembly which was made public on Monday.

Argentina tightened foreign-exchange rules Monday in a step it says is aimed at limiting money laundering and tax evasion, but which most observers say it is geared to restrict the flow of dollars.

Argentina’s head of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Under Secretariat Norberto Yauhar openly denied the alleged collapse of hake (Merluccius hubbsi) fishery in the South Atlantic and claims of absence of control measures and management to ensure its sustainability.

An increasing number of Argentines have growing expectations about their country’s economy well into 2011 when presidential elections are scheduled to take place, according to a public opinion poll published this weekend in the Buenos Aires press.

Argentina’s Supreme Court president Ricardo Lorenzetti said that the blockade by Argentine pickets impeding, since 2006 crossing to neighbouring Uruguay, to protest the construction of a pulp mill, is “unsustainable”.

Over the last 20 years abundance of common hake (Merluccius hubbsi) has declined 80% in the Southwest Atlantic as a result of over-fishing, claims Argentina’s Fundación Vida Silvestre, Wild Life Foundation, (FVSA).

Two Royal Air Force Euro Typhoon fighters and their Vickers VC10 refuelling tanker had to land Wednesday afternoon in Punta Arenas, extreme south of Chile, because of adverse weather conditions in the Falkland Islands Mount Pleasant Airport.

Pressure is mounting in Argentina for pickets blocking an international bridge leading to Uruguay to be ordered removed by a court order, following Wednesday’ presidential summit when Uruguay’s Jose Mujica and Argentina’s Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner agreed on a joint agenda of pending issues.