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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, October 21st 2025 - 00:00 UTC

Latin America

  • Tuesday, March 14th 2017 - 21:23 UTC

    Mexico practices direct diplomacy with the Trump family at the White House

    Videgaray met Trump's son-in-law and senior advisor Jared Kushner, along with National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster and Gary Cohn, a top financial aid

    Mexico's top diplomat was in Washington last week for meetings with the U.S. government, sidestepping the normal channels and heading straight for the White House. Mexican Foreign Secretary Luis Videgaray met at the White House with President Trump's son-in-law and senior advisor Jared Kushner, along with National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster and Gary Cohn, a top financial aid, the Mexican government announced.

  • Tuesday, March 14th 2017 - 21:08 UTC

    Death toll in girls shelter in Guatemala rises to 40; allegedly they were locked in by officials

    The 40th victim died on Sunday in hospital. Out of 22 girls admitted, 10 have died, five have been discharged, four are stable condition and two in critical condition.

    The death toll from the fire at Guatemala's Virgen de la Asunción shelter for girls in the municipality of San José Pinula has risen to 40, officials said. Four of the girls hospitalized after the fire last Wednesday were flown on an airplane ambulance to the United States for treatment at the Shriners Hospital for Children of Galveston, Texas, Saturday night.

  • Thursday, March 9th 2017 - 21:33 UTC

    Bolivia expands legal coca crop area by 12.000 hectares

    “We want to guarantee coca supplies for life” for Bolivians who consume the leaves legally, sometimes in ancestral rituals, Morales said in a speech.

    Bolivia passed a controversial measure on Wednesday to expand production of coca, the raw material for cocaine. Leftist president Evo Morales dismissed warnings that an increase in coca crops would fuel the illegal drug trade.

  • Thursday, March 9th 2017 - 14:09 UTC

    Peruvian 2017 toothfish quota established at 160 tons

    Fishing for Patagonian toothfish must end when the quota is reached or, failing that, it must not exceed December 31, 2017.

    Peruvian Ministry of Production (PRODUCE) has set the maximum allowable catch quota for Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) at 160 tons for 2017. According to the Ministerial Resolution No. 097-2017-PRODUCE, published on Friday in the official newspaper El Peruano, states the quota may be modified according to biological and/or environmental conditions, following a report from the Instituto Mar del Peru (IMARPE).

  • Monday, March 6th 2017 - 17:41 UTC

    The Economist Argentina summit: Reemerging on the global stage

    The summit will bring together more than 200 government and business leaders to evaluate Argentina's progress over the last year

    The Economist’s Argentina Summit taking place in Buenos Aires on Wednesday, 8th March, will bring together more than 200 government and business leaders to evaluate Argentina's progress over the last year and to discuss the country's social, political and economic future in the year ahead.

  • Friday, March 3rd 2017 - 11:55 UTC

    Bolivian president rushed to Cuba for medical attention is recovering with “positive outlook”

    Bolivia's Vice President and acting head of state Alvaro Garcia

    Bolivian President Evo Morales has been treated for a throat viral infection in Cuba and will stay on the Caribbean island for several days of medical observation, Bolivia's Vice President and acting head of state Alvaro Garcia Linera said on Thursday.

  • Wednesday, March 1st 2017 - 20:58 UTC

    Latin American prosecutors will jointly investigate Odebrecht bribery case

    As part of the ongoing investigation, an arrest warrant was recently issued for former Peruvian president Alejandro Toledo, who is now a fugitive from justice

    A multilateral group of officials will jointly investigate the extent of corruption stemming from the Odebrecht bribery case. Following a meeting on February 16, executives from the public prosecution offices of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Portugal and Venezuela agreed to work together to fully investigate bribes alleged to have been paid to high-ranking officials across Latin America and beyond.

  • Wednesday, March 1st 2017 - 17:41 UTC

    Colombia cancels construction contracts with Odebrechet

    Colombia’s prosecution office reported there is evidence to suggest Odebrecht paid bribes: allegedly it handed US$6.5 million to a former transportation vice minister

    The Colombian National Infrastructure Agency (ANI) has cancelled a US$1.89 billion highway construction contract with Odebrecht. The Brazilian contractor is the majority partner in a consortium that won the 25-year public private partnership (PPP) contract in 2010.

  • Sunday, February 26th 2017 - 14:04 UTC

    “I prefer bridges to walls”, Kuczynski tells Trump at the White House

    “We're interested in the free movement of people ... I emphasized that to President Trump and we prefer bridges to walls”, said the Peruvian president

    The first Latin American leader to visit U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House said that he told Trump he prefers bridges to walls and favors the free movement of people across borders. However, Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski declined to comment specifically on Trump's proposal to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexican border to curb illegal immigration and drug trafficking in a press conference following the meeting.

  • Thursday, February 23rd 2017 - 09:49 UTC

    Ecuador presidential run off next 2 April confirmed by electoral authorities

    Moreno led the field in Sunday's election with 39.4% of votes, while Lasso finished second at 28.1%. Moreno fell just short of the 40% threshold needed

    Ecuador's electoral commission has formally ruled that a runoff election will be needed to choose a successor for socialist President Rafael Correa. The body's announcement on Wednesday confirms its earlier indication that ruling party candidate Lenin Moreno and conservative former banker Guillermo Lasso will face off in an April 2 vote.