
The United Nations General Assembly elected this week Chad, Chile, Lithuania, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia to serve as non-permanent members on the Security Council for two-year terms beginning on 1 January 2014. The five countries obtained the required two-thirds majority of those Member States present and voting in the 193-member Assembly.

Argentina agreed to compensate five companies that won rulings over investment disputes as the country looks for the World Bank to approve 3 billion dollars in loans. The companies agreed to accept payment in dollar bonds and to reduce the principal amount of their awards by 25%, the Argentine economy ministry said Friday in a statement.

Saudi Arabia, in a display of anger at the failure of the international community to end the war in Syria and act on other Middle East issues, said it would not take up its seat on the United Nations Security Council.

Milan court ruled that former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi should be barred from holding public office for two years following a conviction for tax fraud. But, since Berlusconi is a senator, the court's decision will have no immediate effect and his expulsion from the Senate will depend on a separate vote in the upper house of parliament, expected to take place next month.

Italy’s tax collection agency says it has formally notified Diego Maradona that it will begin procedures to freeze his assets in Italy to pay off his tax debt of 39 million Euros or 53 million dollars.

Brazil is pushing ahead with a planned one billion dollars purchase of anti-aircraft missile batteries from Russia in a deal that will cement a strategic defence partnership between the two BRICS nations, the Brazilian Defence Ministry said.

The United Kingdom government set out its approach and policy on the Arctic in a paper released on Thursday and titled: Arctic Policy Framework - Adapting To Change: UK policy towards the Arctic.

Spain will not seek support from the Ibero-American summit to call on the UK to resume the bilateral dialogue on Gibraltar’s sovereignty as Argentina has done traditionally with the Falklands/Malvinas issue, according to Spanish diplomatic sources reported in the Madrid media.

US hedge funds fighting Argentina for repayment on defaulted debt asked a US appeals court on Tuesday to lift its hold on a ruling that ordered Argentina to repay the holders.

Premier Oil, which has a farm in agreement with Falkland Islands Rockhopper Exploration, is buying into an exploration project in Kenya, by farming into onshore Block 2B.