
News of a potential offer of a tariff rate quota for 85,000 tons of beef in the Mercosur/European Union negotiations has triggered a dismayed reaction from the ICSA’s (Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association’s) Beef Chairman Edmond Phelan.

The British Overseas Territory of Dominica has suffered “widespread damage” from Hurricane Maria, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit announced. “We have lost all that money can buy,” he said in a Facebook post. The hurricane suddenly strengthened to a “potentially catastrophic” category five storm, before making landfall on the Caribbean island.

The United States is considering closing its embassy in Cuba after diplomatic staff reported health problems which Washington blames on a sonic attack. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said a decision whether to shut to the mission in Havana was under evaluation.

The Newton Fund, a UK Government initiative, has announced the opening of applications for scientific researchers of six Latin American countries (among them, Argentina) to take part in regional workshops on biodiversity or travel grants to the United Kingdom.

Brazil's lower house of Congress has given initial approval to a bill to reduce the huge array of political parties that have made it hard to govern the country and contributed to corruption. The chamber voted 384-16 for the establishment of a minimum national vote threshold that parties must reach to get public funding and free radio and television time for their election campaigns. The requirement would be 1.5% of votes in 2018, rising to 3% in 2030.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos are pledging to strengthen ties in areas like science, security and tourism as Colombia transitions into a post-conflict era. Netanyahu arrived in Bogota on Wednesday for the second-leg of his trip as the first Israeli prime minister to visit Latin America.

Conservative presidential candidate Sebastian Piñera is maintaining a wide lead in the polls ahead of Chile's November election, though the race to challenge him in a potential runoff is tight, according to a monthly survey. Piñera, who was president of Chile between 2010 and 2014, captured 34% of voter intentions in the survey by GfK Adimark, up from 32% last month.

Uruguay has a new vice-president following the resignation of the questioned and discredited Raul Sendic. On Wednesday mid-morning, Lucia Topolansky, wife of ex president Jose Mujica received unanimous support from the General Assembly (123/123). Under the Uruguayan constitution the head of the most voted Senate group of the winning party in the last election, in this case the MPP (Popular Participation Movement), leads in the presidential succession line. She is the first woman to occupy such a post.

Assessments are still coming in from the impact of Hurricane Irma on a number of Caribbean countries in the northern Leeward Islands and the northern Caribbean with warnings and watches still in place for a few countries in Irma’s path. Additionally, due to the projected path of Hurricane Jose, a category 4 storm, tropical storm and hurricane watches and warnings have been issued for some countries in the northern Leeward Islands.

Hurricane Irma’s leading edge swirled toward Florida state with 195 km/h winds Saturday on a projected new track that could expose Tampa — not Miami — to a direct hit. Tampa has not taken a head-on blow from a major hurricane in nearly a century.