Latin America

• Saturday, December 20th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Oil prices threaten Chavez constitution reform process

  Venezuela's National Assembly has given preliminary approval for a constitutional referendum to scrap presidential term limits, which would allow President Hugo Chavez to run for re-election in 2012 and beyond.

• Saturday, December 20th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  LAN allowed to operate in Ecuador's domestic market

  Chile's LAN was granted a two-year concession to operate domestic flights in Ecuador, a top aviation official said on Thursday. The airline's Ecuadorean unit will be allowed to fly local routes to major cities like Guayaquil, Quito and Cuenca.

• Saturday, December 20th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Ecuadorean bankers concern about “financial stability”

  Members of Ecuador's private banking sector expressed concern Friday that recent government financial decisions and overall policies, together with the global crisis, are putting the country's financial system in jeopardy.

• Saturday, December 20th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Unasur initiative not incompatible with OAS, says Rice

  United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice does not think that the creation of an organization that pools Latin American and Caribbean countries would be a threat or incompatible with for the Organization of American States (OAS).

• Saturday, December 20th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Russian Navy flotilla makes first visit to Cuba since Cold War

  

  Three ships from Russia's Northern Fleet arrived in Havana Bay on Friday as part of the Russian Navy's first visit to Cuba since the Cold War. On arrival the Admiral Chabanenko destroyer fired a 21-salvo “international salute,” which the country's coastal artillery returned.

• Thursday, December 18th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Unasur will consider Defence Council agenda in January

  The Union of Latinamerican Nations (UNASUR) meeting in Brazil this week agreed the creation of a South American Defence Council, which will have “a collective vision of defence”, as it was defined by Chilean President Michelle Bachelet who currently chairs the twelve-member Unasur.

• Thursday, December 18th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Cuba closer to region accepts political dialogue on OAS

  

  Cuban president Raúl Castro said he was willing to talk about the possible re-incorporation of Cuba to the Organization of American States, OAS, from which it was expulsed in 1962, according to press reports from Brazil where the Latinamerican and Caribbean summit is taking place with the participation of leaders from the 33 countries.

• Thursday, December 18th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Democratic Chile has spent billions in upgrading Armed Forces

  

  In a highly sensitive area, Chilean Defence and Armed Forces, rich in resources from copper windfall prices, have a political and strategic problem in their hands with the decommissioning of 200 Leopard 1 tanks to be replaced by 140 Leopard 2, purchased from Germany.

• Wednesday, December 17th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Unasur should have Secretary General next April 30

  

  The Union of South American Nations, Unasur, agreed on a new timetable for the ratification of the organization's multilateral treaty and for reaching a consensus on the nomination of a standing secretary general, which has soured relations between Uruguay and Argentina.

• Wednesday, December 17th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Chilean authorities warn about sea food consumption

  Chilean Congress members have asked the Ministry of Public Health to declare a “sanitary emergency in the south of the country” given the massive sea food poisoning contaminated with the vibrio parahaemolyticus bacteria.