Latin America

• Saturday, January 27th 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Chile and Bolivia make progress on de-miming border, but not on Ocean access.

  

  In a visit last week to Bolivia's capital, La Paz, Chilean defense minister Vivianne Blanlot announced plans for extensive joint military cooperation between the two nations, including the de-mining of their shared border. Still, Blanlot made it clear that her government would not budge on the issue of providing landlocked Bolivia with access to the Pacific Ocean.

• Friday, January 26th 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Polished Valparaiso “invaded” by 8.000 cruise visitors

  

  Three cruise vessels including “Queen Mary 2” called Friday in the Chilean port of Valparaíso with thousands of tourists, following a similar situation the previous Wednesday with the “Discovery”.

• Thursday, January 25th 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Air crash kills Ecuador defence chief

  

  Ecuador's first female defense minister died Wednesday in a collision of two helicopters that also killed her daughter and five members of the military, officials said

• Thursday, January 25th 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Ecuadorians support re writing constitution and new Congress

  

  A majority of Ecuadorians support President Rafael Correa's proposal to amend the Constitution and change the country's one house legislative branch, according go a Cedatos/Gallup opinion poll released this week.

• Thursday, January 25th 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Bolivia's Morales reshuffles cabinet and ratifies reforms

  

  Bolivian President Evo Morales reshuffled this week almost half of his sixteen members' cabinet a day after celebrating his first year in office.

• Thursday, January 25th 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Chile to clip military procurement copper fed fund

  

  Chile's Defence Minister Vivianne Blanlot submitted this week a detailed report of the controversial Copper Reserve Law, reaffirming the desire of the government of President Michelle Bachelet to modify or repeal the Pinochet-era legislation.

• Wednesday, January 24th 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Latinamerica's major threats: lack of energy and Chavez

  

  Lack of energy, Venezuela's president Hugo Chavez and international terrorism are the major threats for Latinamerica concluded Wednesday several experts from the region in the framework of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

• Monday, January 22nd 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Possible mustard gas poisoning of former Chilean president

  

  Former Chilean president Eduardo Frei Montalvo who died in 1982 could have been poisoned with mustard gas, according to a report from the Belgian University of Gant which is currently in the hands of the Chilean judge who has the case.

• Monday, January 22nd 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Chile opens Tierra del Fuego for oil/gas exploration

  Chile will call an international bid for the exploration of hydrocarbons in the extreme south of the country during the first half of this year, announced Karen Poniachik, the country's Minister of Energy and Mines.

• Monday, January 22nd 2007 - 20:00 UTC

  Ecuador plans to restructure debt with 60% face value cut

  Following on Argentina's steps, Ecuador plans to cover fiscal needs with the sale of bonds to Venezuela and will renegotiate part of its sovereign bonds only admitting 40% of face value, announced Ecuadorian Finance minister Ricardo Patiño.