Latin America

• Tuesday, February 7th 2012 - 16:51 UTC

  Only the Falklands can determine its political future “not London, not Buenos Aires”

  

  “We are well aware that Chile has a different position to us regarding the Falklands and this we understand, but it must be the Islanders who determine their political future, not London, not Buenos Aires or third countries”, said UK ambassador in Chile Jon Benjamin in an interview with the Chilean media.

• Tuesday, February 7th 2012 - 00:03 UTC

  Malvinas dispute anticipates visits of Cristina Fernandez and Hague to Chile

  

  British Foreign Secretary William Hague and Argentine president Cristina Fernandez are expected to visit Chile in the near future as pressure mounts on the conservative government of President Sebastian Piñera because of the ongoing UK/Argentina diplomatic dispute over the Faklands/Malvinas issue.

• Monday, February 6th 2012 - 22:08 UTC

  Surinam and Santa Lucia apply to join President Chavez ALBA group

  

  Surinam and the Caribbean island of Santa Lucia are in the process of becoming full members of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Peoples of America, ALBA group, while Haiti has been nominated “standing invited member”.

• Monday, February 6th 2012 - 18:45 UTC

  Chile supports Malvinas claim but underlines ‘special relation’ with the UK

  

  “Chile’s support to Argentina’s claim over the Malvinas Islands is a state policy for our country” said Chilean Executive secretary Andres Chadwick, but it does not mean any impediment to that “very special relation we have with the UK”.

• Monday, February 6th 2012 - 10:44 UTC

  Top US official for Latinamerica scheduled to visit Peru and Argentina

  

  US Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Roberta S. Jacobson travels this week to Peru and Argentina to meet with government, business, and civil society members in these key regional partners.

• Monday, February 6th 2012 - 07:10 UTC

  Fidel Castro presents two-volume memoirs and cautions about limits to Socialism

  

  Former Cuban President Fidel Castro presented a two-volume memoir at a public ceremony in Havana, where he referred to the mistake of believing that with socialism all economic problems are solved, official media said Saturday.

• Monday, February 6th 2012 - 07:03 UTC

  Caribbean states join Mercosur in barring Falklands’ flagged vessels from their ports

  

  Several Caribbean states and Nicaragua announced this weakened they will bar from their ports any vessel flying the Malvinas flag, according to a release from the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

• Monday, February 6th 2012 - 06:55 UTC

  Chavez lavish celebration of aborted coup with troops hailing the “Socialist fatherland’

  

  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez mounted a lavish celebration to mark the 20th anniversary of the failed coup that helped launch his political career, as opposition leaders slammed the event as a blemish on the country's democracy.

• Monday, February 6th 2012 - 06:51 UTC

  Chavez supports Russia/China veto on UN Syrian resolution as “very positive”

  

  While Western and Arab countries responded with outrage after Russia and China vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that would have urged Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to give up power, Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez considered the veto as “very positive”.

• Monday, February 6th 2012 - 06:43 UTC

  Bolivia declares dengue emergency as six deaths are reported

  

  The Bolivian province of Santa Cruz has declared a sanitary emergency in the region following an outbreak of the mosquito transmitted dengue fever which has already caused at least six deaths, according to local officials.