Mercosur

• Sunday, November 16th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Permanent Secretariat for Ibero-american summits

  The XIII Ibero-american summit meeting in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia agreed the creation of a permanent Secretariat (with a nominated chairman) that will act as an executive branch and have its office in Spain.

• Friday, November 14th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Two “social” summits in Bolivia.

  Heads of state and government from nineteen Latinamerican countries plus Spain and Portugal will be meeting for two days beginning Friday in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, for the Thirteenth Ibero-american summit that on this occasion will concentrate on social issues.

• Friday, November 14th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Mercosur-EU seek “creative” mechanisms.

  Mercosur and the European Union agreed to set October 2004 as the deadline for the completion of a free trade accord, following the latest bilateral meeting held this week in Brussels.

• Friday, November 14th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Menem spent “astronomical” amounts on his foreign trips.

  The Argentine government said Thursday that on his many trips abroad when he was president from 1989 to 1999, Carlos Menem spent “astronomical sums.” ”On every trip he made, Menem would spend astronomical amounts.

• Thursday, November 13th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Peru-US free trade talks.

  Peru announced that next week formal talks for a bilateral free trade agreement will commence in Washington.

• Thursday, November 13th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Hot News from Chile.

  Headlines:
  Chilean peso eases appreciation; Lawsuit against Lan Chile.

• Thursday, November 13th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Soros campaigns against Bush's re-election.

  Hungarian born tycoon George Soros and now United States resident made a donation of five million US dollars to a campaign to prevent the re-election of president George Bush in 2004, according to The Washington Post.

• Thursday, November 13th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Vessel with radioactive waste avoids Cape Horn.

  The “Fret Moselle” transporting nuclear residue from Australia to France will not be crossing Cape Horn in the extreme of South America as originally suspected, according to reports from Argentine and Chilean diplomatic sources.

• Thursday, November 13th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  UK denies extradition of Iranian diplomat.

  The British government decided on Wednesday to turn down Argentina's request for the extradition of a former Iranian diplomat Buenos Aires wants in connection with the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center that left 85 dead and 200 wounded.

• Thursday, November 13th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Thunderstorms kills 13 in Argentina.

  Thunderstorms that swept furiously across central Argentina late Tuesday and all of Wednesday left thirteen dead and caused widespread damage extending to neighbouring Uruguay as the rain, strong winds and hail moved east.