Politics

• Saturday, May 12th 2018 - 06:35 UTC

  Uruguay ratifies Inter-American Convention against All Forms of Discrimination and Intolerance

  

  Uruguay on Friday deposited at the headquarters of the Organization of American States (OAS) in Washington DC, the instrument of ratification of the Inter-American Convention against all Forms of Discrimination and Intolerance, becoming the first state to ratify it. Uruguay is also the only one that has ratified all the binding legal instruments of the inter-American system.

• Friday, May 11th 2018 - 09:05 UTC

  Despite legal setbacks, Lula reiterates his intention to run for a third presidential term

  

  Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva reiterated on Thursday his intention to run for a third presidential term. Lula was jailed on April 7 and is serving a sentence of 12 years and one month for corruption and money laundering.

• Friday, May 11th 2018 - 08:35 UTC

  Paraguay's president “soul brother” accused by Brazil of money laundering

  

  Paraguayan authorizes have issued an arrest warrant for a man President Horacio Cartes has described as his “soul brother” as part of a sweeping investigation into corruption in Latin America.

• Friday, May 11th 2018 - 06:29 UTC

  Argentine stock market climbs 6% and the exchange market operates cautiously

  

  Argentine equities rallied on Thursday, while the country's peso currency was stable, as the central bank sold foreign currency reserves in the spot market for the first time since the country announced it was seeking financing from the IMF.

• Friday, May 11th 2018 - 06:12 UTC

  Bank of England leaves interest rates unchanged, slashes 2018 growth prospects

  

  The Bank of England has backed off from raising interest rates as it slashed 2018 growth forecasts, but said the economy would bounce back from a weather-hit “soft patch”. Policymakers kept the prospect of rate hikes firmly on the cards, although it sparked confusion over when the next increase may come.

• Friday, May 11th 2018 - 05:39 UTC

  IMF and White House support Macri's economic reform program

  

  International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde said on Thursday she is ready to aid Argentina and wants talks on a financing package to be finalized quickly. Lagarde said she instructed the IMF team to continue discussions on a loan program with the goal to “reach a rapid conclusion.”

• Thursday, May 10th 2018 - 18:14 UTC

  Falklands delegation travels to Buenos Aires for fishery talks and data exchange

  

  Next Monday, 14 May 2018 four representatives from the Falkland Islands Government’s Natural Resources Department will be part of a UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office lead delegation meeting with the Government of Argentina, in Buenos Aires, to begin two days of discussions on fish and squid stocks in the South Atlantic, and the possibility of resuming the exchange of scientific fisheries data for the benefit of the region.

• Thursday, May 10th 2018 - 08:28 UTC

  Swedish PM to testify in corruption case involving sale of 36 fighter jets to Brazil

  

  Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven has been summoned to testify next month as a witness in a Brazilian corruption case involving the purchase of fighter jets by Brazil, the Stockholm District Court said on Wednesday. Lofven will be asked in a Swedish court about his contacts with Brazil’s former presidents Dilma Rousseff and Lula da Silva regarding the country’s purchase of Saab Gripen fighters in a deal struck five years ago.

• Thursday, May 10th 2018 - 07:37 UTC

  Argentine minister meets IMF Lagarde and US Treasury official: ratifies “gradualism”

  

  Argentina Economy Minister Nicolas Dujovne is due to meet on Thursday with IMF chief Christine Lagarde to request a financing package to help shore up the struggling economy, officials said. Dujovne will also meet with a senior US Treasury official in a key step in the talks with the IMF, which are likely to last six weeks, his spokesman said in a statement.

• Thursday, May 10th 2018 - 07:28 UTC

  Falklands caught in the post Brexit Galileo space controversy

  

  United Kingdom ministers are unilaterally considering stopping EU access to the Galileo satellite earth station in the Falklands and Ascension, according to reports in the UK press. The move comes after Brussels chief Brexit negotiator, Michael Barnier, stated that UK companies would have to be excluded from the development of sensitive Galileo infrastructure following Brexit due to security concerns.