Politics

• Wednesday, July 8th 2009 - 12:02 UTC

  Kirchners change some cabinet names but ratify course

  

  Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner named late Tuesday new cabinet chief and Economy minister in a cabinet shake-up supposedly aimed at helping her rebound from a crushing defeat in mid-term elections. However the opposition called it a “mild lifting” and demanded an immediate round of dialogue.

• Wednesday, July 8th 2009 - 11:56 UTC

  Uruguay’s ruling coalition cobbles presidential ticket

  

  Finally at a brief and cool ceremony the Uruguayan ruling coalition announced on Monday evening the ticket for the coming October presidential election: the winner of the primary and former guerrilla leader Jose Mujica will head the slate with economist Danilo Astori as vice-president candidate.

• Wednesday, July 8th 2009 - 11:50 UTC

  Brazil and France call for a more “democratic world order”

  

  French President Nicolas Sarkozy and visiting Brazilian President Lula da Silva called Tuesday for a more “democratic world order” that would give emerging economies a larger voice in international finance and justice affairs.

• Wednesday, July 8th 2009 - 08:07 UTC

  Mercosur power integration is “absurd” without Paraguay

  

  Mercosur asymmetries in power generation are overwhelming and almost absurd, with Paraguay the main power exporter in South America unable to dispose of its energy surplus, claimed Ricardo Canese, member of the Mercosur Parliament in representation of Paraguay.

• Wednesday, July 8th 2009 - 07:30 UTC

  UK political consensus for Armed Forces review and spending cuts

  

  The United Kingdom government has laid the ground for the first full-scale review of Britain's armed forces for more than a decade once the general election is out of the way.

• Wednesday, July 8th 2009 - 07:23 UTC

  Loan delinquencies in the US hit a new record

  

  The level of people falling behind with consumer loans in the US hit a new high in the first three months of 2009, the American Bankers Association said. Rising unemployment was behind the missed payments, it suggested.

• Wednesday, July 8th 2009 - 07:17 UTC

  Costa Rican president to lead mediation in Honduras political crisis

  

  Costa Rican President Oscar Arias is to lead mediation to resolve the political crisis in Honduras. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made the announcement in Washington after meeting ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya.

• Tuesday, July 7th 2009 - 11:22 UTC

  Mrs. Clinton bridges dialogue between Honduras “ousted and interim” leaders

  

  Ousted Honduran leader Manuel Zelaya was scheduled to meet with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Tuesday, as the country's political crisis talks moved to Washington.

• Tuesday, July 7th 2009 - 11:17 UTC

  Lula da Silva criticizes G8 summit; calls for BRIC participation

  

  Rich countries are not living up to their pledges to help developing countries weather the effects of the global economic crisis said Brazilian president Lula da Silva, ahead of this week’s G8 meeting in Italy.

• Tuesday, July 7th 2009 - 10:07 UTC

  Corruption claims erode Lula da Silva’s control over the Senate

  

  The Brazilian Senate --whose president Jose Sarney has been accused of corruption--, apparently has a secret bank account operating millions of US dollars and a private “bunker” for a few, with facilities for “intimate” dates, according to reports in the Sao Paulo and Brasilia press.