MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, April 4th 2025 - 13:47 UTC

Latin America

  • Thursday, March 6th 2025 - 21:14 UTC

    Trump postpones tariffs on Mexican items at least until April 2

    Trump's good rapport with Sheinbaum was the reason for this reversal, the Republican leader explained

    US President Donald Trump announced a temporary exemption from new 25% tariffs for goods from Mexico covered under the 2020 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The Republican leader adopted the measure following a telephone conversation with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. The exemption, effective until at least April 2, reverses tariffs imposed earlier this week, aimed at addressing fentanyl trafficking and trade imbalances.

  • Thursday, March 6th 2025 - 10:59 UTC

    Uruguay wants to become an “actor of peace”

    Lubetkin outlined Uruguay's foreign policy under President Orsi

    Uruguayan Foreign Minister Mario Lubetkin had on Wednesday his first formal day in office on Wednesday. During a ceremony in Montevideo attended by President Yamandú Orsi and Vice President Carolina Cosse, the South American country's top diplomat emphasized Uruguay's role as an “actor of peace” to help reduce global tensions.

  • Wednesday, March 5th 2025 - 09:57 UTC

    Uruguay, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, and Colombia endorse Surinamese candidate for OAS top spot

    The Surinamese Albert Ramdin has served as Assistant OAS Secretary-General

    Uruguay, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, and Colombia have endorsed Suriname's Foreign Minister, Albert Ramdin, as their candidate for Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS). Ramdin, who previously served as Assistant Secretary General of the OAS, is seen as uniquely qualified to address contemporary challenges and bring a fresh perspective. The vote to replace the outgoing Secretary General, Luis Almagro of Uruguay, is scheduled for March 10, with Paraguayan Foreign Minister Ruben Ramirez Lezcano also in the running. Almagro's term ends on May 25 after a decade in the role.

  • Wednesday, March 5th 2025 - 09:28 UTC

    State of Emergency extended in 7 Ecuadorean provinces

    Citing “grave internal commotion,” Noboa issued Executive Decree 552, extending the measure

    Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa extended this week the state of emergency for 30 more days in seven provinces and two municipalities, including the capital, Quito, to curb insecurity and maintain public order, social peace, and peaceful coexistence.

  • Tuesday, March 4th 2025 - 20:45 UTC

    Preliminary deal reached for sale of Hong Kong company's stake in Panama Canal operations

    CK Hutchison has been operating the Port of Balboa for more than two decades

    Given US President Donald Trump's pressure, CK Hutchison Holdings, a Hong Kong-based conglomerate, agreed to sell control of a unit operating ports near the Panama Canal, it was announced Tuesday. The sale includes an 80% stake in the Hutchison Ports group and a 90% interest in Panama Ports Company, which operates the ports of Balboa and Cristobal. The consortium acquiring these stakes includes BlackRock Inc., Global Infrastructure Partners, and Terminal Investment Ltd.

  • Friday, February 28th 2025 - 10:50 UTC

    The Economist praises Uruguay's democratic standards

    Although topping the region, Uruguay fell one notch from last year's rankings

    According to The Economist's global Democracy Index published Thursday, Uruguay is the only country in the region with a full democracy, ranking 15th globally with a score of 8.67 out of 10.

  • Friday, February 28th 2025 - 08:32 UTC

    Machado says Chavista regime threatens her neighbors

    “We are facing a criminal system; this is not a political crisis,” Machado underlined

    Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado denounced on Thursday that “unidentified men” attempted to force their way into her home in Caracas' Los Palos Grandes area and insisted these people representing Bolivarian ruler Nicolás Maduro's “furious tyranny” threatened to arrest her neighbors and a watchman.

  • Thursday, February 27th 2025 - 20:37 UTC

    Bolivia launches industrialized iron complex

    The steel from El Mutún could boost Iranian and Russian developments in the country

    Bolivian President Luis Arce inaugurated the El Mutún complex, the South American country's first industrialized iron facility, which can boost other infrastructure developments, particularly those sponsored by Russia and Iran.

  • Wednesday, February 26th 2025 - 10:11 UTC

    US backs modernization of Guatemalan Pacific port to counterbalance China's expansion

    The Guatemalan alternative also offers the nearby Quetzal Duty-Free Zone just four kilometers from the port

    Guatemala and the United States have announced a US$ 125 million initiative to expand Puerto Quetzal, the largest Pacific port in the Central American country, in a move to counterbalance China's presence in the region through its current prevalence in the Panama Canal in addition to the projected Nicaragua interoceanic crossing already under construction.

  • Tuesday, February 25th 2025 - 10:13 UTC

    Peru and Bolivia sign key bilateral agreements

    We are neighboring countries united by several elements, Sosa said during the ceremony in Lima

    Foreign Ministers Elmer Schialer of Peru and Celinda Sosa of Bolivia signed a series of agreements in Lima on Monday to strengthen ties between the two countries with a focus on cooperation and integration to promote the bilateral agenda. The understandings include a Temporary Border Module at the San Lorenzo (Peru)-Extrema (Bolivia) border crossing and the financing and Biennial Operating Plan 2025-2026 for the Binational Autonomous Authority of Lake Titicaca.