Mercosur

• Wednesday, January 9th 2002 - 20:00 UTC

  A Lady for Defence in Chile

  Chilean president Raúl Lagos reshuffled his cabinet naming a woman for the first time ever as Defence Minister.

• Wednesday, January 9th 2002 - 20:00 UTC

  Mercosur Ministers meeting

  The Mercosur presidential summit scheduled for this Friday was postponed for later in January and only Foreign Affairs Ministers from the block's four countries and associate members Chile and Bolivia will be meeting in Buenos Aires.

• Wednesday, January 9th 2002 - 20:00 UTC

  Spain warns Argentina

  With the prodding of Spain, the European Union demanded from Argentina a “reliable, dialogued and coherent budget, capable of generating confidence among investors”.

• Sunday, January 6th 2002 - 20:00 UTC

  Talks with creditors in February

  Asking for “understanding and belief”, since “miracles do not exist”, Argentine Economy Minister Jorge Remes Lenicov confirmed on Sunday evening a 40% devaluation of the peso and simultaneously outlined the rules for the new economic system which includes negotiations with the country's creditors, “sometime in February”, after “we've put the house in order” .

• Saturday, January 5th 2002 - 20:00 UTC

  Mercosur summit

  Mercosur presidents will be meeting next Friday in Buenos Aires to express their full support to the new Argentine government and formally hand the rotating six month chair of the block to Argentina.

• Friday, January 4th 2002 - 20:00 UTC

  “Just a step away from blood and anarchy”

  In his first public appearance since taking office Argentine president Eduardo Duhalde confirmed the devaluation of the Argentine peso and called for a new strong alliance of the “productive community”, backed by a convergence of the political and productive powers of the country.

• Thursday, January 3rd 2002 - 20:00 UTC

  “Argentina is broke”

  “Argentina is broke, and we're all responsible”, said incoming Argentine president Eduardo Duhalde after taking office in a sober ceremony in Casa Rosada, that contrary to a few days ago, concluded with the intonation of the national anthem.

• Wednesday, December 26th 2001 - 20:00 UTC

  Tough decisions still to come

  Interim Argentine president Adolfo Rodríguez Saa confirmed his administration is working in the creation of a new currency which will help finance the million jobs he promised on taking office, and that will thrust the country out of the four years recession and record unemployment.

• Sunday, December 23rd 2001 - 20:00 UTC

  The long expected moratorium

  Argentina's newly nominated President finally announced what had been anticipated for months, a moratorium in the country's massive 132 billion US dollars debt, averting a political and institutional crisis that threatened to plunge Argentina in disarray.

• Sunday, December 23rd 2001 - 20:00 UTC

  Regional reaction

  Argentina's Mercosur partners expressed their solidarity with the incoming government but privately are following events closely, not only because of the effects of the moratorium in financial global markets, but since the situation is still, politically unresolved.