Latin America

• Monday, May 17th 2010 - 05:22 UTC

  EU and Mexico reaffirm and consolidate “strategic association”

  

  The European Union and Mexico decided Sunday at their fifth bilateral summit, held in the Spanish town of Comillas, to take measures to give concrete content to their relationship, which they have jointly designated to be one of “strategic association”.

• Monday, May 17th 2010 - 05:11 UTC

  Chavez trying to prevent speculation with US dollars

  

  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez signed Sunday a currency law passed by the National Assembly this week that seeks to stem a decline in the local currency Bolívar, according to a broadcast on state television.

• Monday, May 17th 2010 - 04:59 UTC

  Strong interest for Peru’s bidding process for 25 oil blocks

  

  Peru resumed the bidding process for more than two-dozen oil blocks, almost two years after a bribery scandal related to contracts awarded to a Norwegian company. The president of state-owned Perupetro, Daniel Saba, said that 25 new blocks will be put up for international public bidding.

• Monday, May 17th 2010 - 04:55 UTC

  State of emergency on anniversary of Peruvian Shinning Path terrorist group

  

  The administration of Peruvian president Alan Garcia declared a state of emergency for 60 days in the regions of Huánuco, Ucayali and San Martín, reportedly the areas that have the most drugs and terrorist related activities.

• Monday, May 17th 2010 - 01:47 UTC

  Colombian FARC groups operating inside Brazilian territory, claim reports

  

  The Colombian guerrilla force FARC has “permanent bases in Brazil”, according to secret Federal Police reports, extracts of which were published Sunday by the prestigious O Estado de Sao Paulo.

• Monday, May 17th 2010 - 01:18 UTC

  Disappearance of prominent Mexican power broker linked to organized crime

  

  Mexican president Felipe Calderon said that organized crime will not settle in the country as it did in Colombia in the nineties. His Sunday statement comes a day after a former Mexican presidential candidate who remained a power broker in the ruling party went missing amid signs of violence.

• Saturday, May 15th 2010 - 04:04 UTC

  Russia Ratifies Interest in Latam; Plans for Nuclear Power and Military Sales

  

  Russia is planning to strengthen its relations with 61 countries worldwide, including Chile. It is exploring options in Latin America for the development of nuclear power and military sales, a document from its ministry of foreign affairs stated this week.

• Saturday, May 15th 2010 - 03:09 UTC

  NZ oil company operating in Chilean Tierra del Fuego strikes gas

  

  An affiliate of New Zealand’s Greymouth oil company, PetroMagallaes announced this week the discovery of hydrocarbons in two prospects in Chilean Tierra del Fuego. The prospects are in Caupolican blocks, belonging to what are known as the Springhill formation.

• Saturday, May 15th 2010 - 03:03 UTC

  Brazilian tourists captivated by Chile’s ski slopes and vineyards

  

  A new tourism review shows that Brazilians love Chile’s ski slopes and vineyards, but say that national flights are expensive and inflexible.

• Saturday, May 15th 2010 - 02:57 UTC

  Bolivian parliament en route to approved cooperation treaty with Iran

  

  Bolivia’s Lower House approved a cooperation agreement with Iran in spite of strong protests from opposition congress-women claiming that the Teheran regime systematically violates the rights of women.