
Exxon Mobil says plans are in place to start exploratory drilling in Guyana this month. In a release it was disclosed that the Guyana Minister of Natural Resources Robert Persaud, met with Chuck Calavan, ExxonMobil Vice President of US and Latin America and Jeff Simon, Country Manager, ESSO.

President Nicolas Maduro said his government had captured American citizens involved in espionage activities, and said US citizens in the future will have to seek visas to come to Venezuela. Speaking during a rally, he said his government will prohibit some US officials from entering Venezuela in retaliation for a similar measure by the government of President Barack Obama against a group of Venezuelan public officials.

Ramblers Worldwide Holidays has added more options in South America with the reinstatement of a Falkland Islands and Chile itinerary and the return of Bolivia to the program. The first sold-out trip to the Falkland Islands has just returned and another, which is almost full, will run from November 5, leading in at £4,220pp.

Loans by China's state-owned banks to Latin American countries rose by 71% to 22bn dollars in 2014, according to estimates published by the China-Latin America Finance Database. The figure is the second largest on record for Chinese lending in Latin America, according to the report.

Argentina's secretary for Issues relative to the Malvinas Islands Daniel Filmus visited this week Guatemala as part of a tour of Central America to promote the 'Malvinas cause' and collect support from regional governments and institutions.

Argentina's Cabinet Chief Jorge Capitanich on Monday responded to Uruguay’s President José “Pepe” Mujica, who accused Argentina of “forgetting about integration” when things go right for the country, saying the statement was “unfair” given Argentina’s role in the “foundation” of regional integration.

Jose Miguel Insulza, Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), said on Friday that “the detention of the Mayor of Caracas, Antonio Ledezma, has caused alarm due to the way in which it took place and because it deals with an elected leader exercising his duties.”

Another United States prominent TV news figure has been accused of exaggerating his exploits while covering combat situations: this time it's Fox News' Bill O'Reilly and refers to his alleged coverage of the Falklands' war in 1982.

The Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) received a presentation by Uruguay's foreign minister Luis Almagro, in his capacity as candidate for Secretary General of the Organization, in a special meeting that took place at the headquarters of the OAS in Washington DC.

Colombia's state-run oil producer Ecopetrol will drill three offshore wells this year, two off its Caribbean Coast and a third in the Gulf of Mexico, after slashing its offshore exploration budget to 200 million dollars down from 632 million last year, the company said.