Mercosur

• Monday, November 17th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Good news for Brazil, bad news for Bolivia.

  Brazil has discovered giant gas reserves with an unimaginable impact in the future, since they are just a hundred miles away from the country's main industrial concentration, Sao Paulo which is equivalent to 40% of the country's GDP.

• Monday, November 17th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Most South American capitals belong to the opposition.

  The capital city governments of most South American countries are in the hands of a party contrary to the government at national level.

• Monday, November 17th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  New thrust for FTAA?but with flexibility.

  Four of Latin America's main leaders agreed to grant the US sponsored Free Trade Association of the Americas, FTAA, a greater thrust. However they also pointed out that this must be done “with flexibility so as to benefit the weakest and poorest nations”.

• Monday, November 17th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Praise for Argentina's recovery.

  The CEO of the Inter-American Development Bank, Enrique Iglesias praised Argentina for its efforts to overcome the economic crisis and the fact that “it's achieving it with its own means”.

• Monday, November 17th 2003 - 20:00 UTC

  Big challenge for Miami's ambition

  Miami security forces have engineered a tight security system to protect the city's reputation as the “bridge of the Americas” and prevent street protests from disrupting the Free Trade Association of the Americas, FTAA, negotiations scheduled for November 20/21 that are expected to concentrate hundreds of delegates from 34 countries and thousands of protestors.

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

  Uruguay-Mexico free trade accord.

  Uruguayan and Mexican presidents Jorge Batlle and Vicente Fox signed this Saturday in Bolivia a free trade agreement, the first bilateral accord Mexico reaches with a Mercosur member country.

• 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.