Latin America

• Tuesday, November 3rd 2009 - 07:37 UTC

  Chilean Navy state of the art OPV “Piloto Pardo” visits Punta Arenas

  

  One of Chile’s Navy latest incorporations Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV 81) “Piloto Pardo” is currently in Punta Arenas from where it will be operating during summer months in fisheries patrol protection, search and rescue operations and other Chilean sovereignty activities along the country’s long coastline, EEZ plus Antarctic logistics tasks.

• Monday, November 2nd 2009 - 11:44 UTC

  Honduras election commission takes off; Lobo leads in opinion polls

  

  United States secretary of Labour and a former Chilean president were named Sunday to a commission tasked with monitoring the creation of a power-sharing government in Honduras, under a US-brokered agreement to end the Central American nation's four-month-old political crisis.

• Saturday, October 31st 2009 - 07:03 UTC

  Venezuela/Brazil agree terms of refinery to be built in Pernambuco

  

  Brazil's government managed oil company Petrobras said on Friday that it had concluded a deal with Venezuela's PDVSA to construct and operate a refinery in northeast Brazil.

• Saturday, October 31st 2009 - 06:06 UTC

  Colombia and US sign bases’ agreement in closed doors ceremony

  

  Colombia and the United States signed Friday in Bogotá the controversial agreement that allows US military personnel to be stationed at seven (land, air, sea) military bases in Washington’s closest ally in the region.

• Saturday, October 31st 2009 - 05:32 UTC

  Chilean Central bank could begin hiking interest rate next second quarter

  

  The Chilean central bank will likely begin hiking the benchmark interest rate, currently at a record low 0.5%, in the second quarter of next year, according to the minutes of its October monetary policy meeting released Wednesday.

• Saturday, October 31st 2009 - 01:16 UTC

  Zelaya and Micheletti agree to deal to end the institutional crisis

  

  The de facto Honduran government has agreed to an eight point deal that may allow ousted President Manuel Zelaya to return to power ahead of elections next month. Unite States diplomats have been in the country to mediate an end to the four-month-old crisis.

• Friday, October 30th 2009 - 21:59 UTC

  Argentina buys wine from Chile to face shortfall in production

  

  Still hurting from a yearlong drought, Argentina is turning to Chile for wine imports in order to keep up with popular demand for wine.

• Friday, October 30th 2009 - 21:56 UTC

  Ecuador signs arms and energy deals with Russia: “just the beginning”

  

  President Dmitry Medvedev called new arms and energy deals between Russia and Ecuador just a beginning as Moscow strives to deepen ties in Latin America. Medvedev and Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa announced a 22 million US dollars deal for Russia to provide Ecuador with two Mi-17 transport helicopters.

• Friday, October 30th 2009 - 21:51 UTC

  Ecuador to pay royalties on pharmaceutical patents

  

  Ecuador is to pay royalties to the holders of international pharmaceutical patents, basing the payments on the sale price of locally produced medicines, the Ecuadorian Institute of Intellectual Property, or IEPI, said this week.

• Friday, October 30th 2009 - 11:10 UTC

  Argentina Chile plan to bore two integration tunnels under the Andes

  

  Relations between Argentina and Chile are going through an optimum moment and once we drill through the Andes, “ghosts of the past will definitively have gone”, said Argentine president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner during the first of her two day visit to Chile.