
Chile's healthcare system is under strain and very close to the limit, President Sebastian Piñera admitted on Sunday, as the number of confirmed novel coronavirus infections approaches 70,000 after a rapid increase in recent days.

The Argentine foreign minister Felipe Solá held a round of talks with his counterparts from Australia, Ireland and Armenia to address issues of special significance for an Argentine foreign policy such as the current Coronavirus pandemic, and its impact on the global economy, and the European Union position regarding the Falkland Islands in a post Brexit scenario.

South America has become “a new epicenter” of the deadly coronavirus pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday, following a surge in the number of Covid-19 infections.

Brazil became the world No 2 hotspot for coronavirus cases on Friday, second only to the United States, after it confirmed that 330,890 people had been infected by the virus, overtaking Russia, the Health Ministry said.

Argentina technically defaulted on Friday for the second time this century after failing to pay US$505 million of interest on its bond debt, but it continues to negotiate a restructuring with creditors. We're not paying but the negotiations are continuing, a government official said.

Peru on Friday extended its state of emergency and a nationwide lockdown to fight the coronavirus pandemic until the end of June, marking one of the longest periods of mandatory isolation in the world.

President Jair Bolsonaro's government warned on Friday that Brazil's “national security” would be at risk if investigators granted a request to seize the far-right leader's cell phone in an obstruction of justice investigation.

The US government on Friday accused the Chinese government of making it impossible for US airlines to resume service to China and ordered four Chinese air carriers to file flight schedules with the US government. The administration of President Donald Trump stopped short of imposing restrictions on Chinese air carriers but said talks with China had failed to produce an agreement.

George Soros, the billionaire financier, has cautioned that the European Union's survival was threatened by the novel coronavirus unless it could issue perpetual bonds or consols to help weak members such as Italy.

The Falkland Islands Government announced the appointment of Marie Horton as the new Director of Education, taking up her position from the 27 May 2020. Ms Horton is an experienced education professional and holds an initial degree from Cardiff University, a Master’s degree from Bristol University and has undertaken further professional qualifications from Liverpool Hope University.