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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, August 5th 2026 - 13:38 UTC

Politics

  • Friday, June 5th 2026 - 07:08 UTC

    Argentina warns it could 'fully exercise all actions' over Falklands oil drilling plans

    The Sea Lion field, north of the archipelago, is operated by Navitas, which holds 65% of the project, while Rockhopper, which discovered it, retains 35%

    Argentina's government warned that it could “fully exercise all” available actions over plans to develop an oil field near the Falkland Islands, in a fresh escalation of the sovereignty dispute. The Foreign Ministry declared the plans of Britain's Rockhopper Exploration “unlawful” and described that company and its Israeli partner, Navitas Petroleum, as “clandestine,” after the Sea Lion project moved from exploration into development.

  • Friday, June 5th 2026 - 00:26 UTC

    Argentine Senate approves a judge Milei opposed over her ties to an investigative journalist

    The Justice Ministry had asked to withdraw the nomination after the family tie to Alconada Mon —who investigates, among other cases, the $LIBRA cryptocurrency scandal— became known

    Argentina's Senate on Thursday approved the appointment of María Verónica Michelli as a judge of Federal Oral Court No. 3 in La Plata, a nomination President Javier Milei had tried to block because she is the sister-in-law of journalist Hugo Alconada Mon, of the newspaper LA NACION. The nomination was approved on the floor by 44 votes to 18 —all the negatives from the ruling party— with two abstentions, in a session that exposed a rift within the governing bloc.

  • Thursday, June 4th 2026 - 21:15 UTC

    Colombian judge orders De la Espriella to stop using national team jersey in campaign

    De la Espriella rejected the decision in a campaign statement and said his legal team had already requested that the measure be overturned

    A Bogotá court ordered presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella and his party, Defensores de la Patria, to refrain from using the Colombian national football jersey at campaign events and in advertising, while it studies a constitutional protection action filed by a citizen. The provisional measure, issued on June 3 by the 120th Municipal Criminal Court, takes immediate effect and also covers social media and the press.

  • Thursday, June 4th 2026 - 15:32 UTC

    Uruguay's anti-graft body faces Congress as opposition alleges 'political use' in Orsi case

    The controversy stems from the purchase of the vehicle, valued on the market at about 79,000 dollars, which Orsi bought for 54,000 dollars days before taking office

    The directorate of Uruguay's Transparency and Public Ethics Board (Jutep) appeared on Thursday before the Chamber of Deputies' Security and Coexistence Commission, amid the controversy over President Yamandú Orsi's purchase of a Hyundai Santa Fe. National Party deputy Pablo Abdala, who requested the summons, accused the body of “political use.”

  • Thursday, June 4th 2026 - 15:11 UTC

    Petro drops constituent assembly bid 17 days before Colombia's presidential runoff

    The electoral context ultimately weighed on the move

    The committee that had promoted a National Constituent Assembly championed by Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced on Thursday that it was halting the collection of signatures and withdrawing the project to reform the 1991 Constitution. The decision, taken 17 days before the June 21 presidential runoff, seeks to clear the way for the governing bloc's candidate, Senator Iván Cepeda, in a move that reshapes the electoral landscape.

  • Thursday, June 4th 2026 - 10:40 UTC

    US proposes forced-labor tariffs on 60 economies, with Brazil and China facing 12.5%

    The initiative seeks to replace the tariffs the Supreme Court struck down in February, when it found that President Donald Trump had exceeded his authority by using an economic emergency law

    The US government proposed tariffs of up to 12.5% on 60 economies —59 countries and the 27-nation European Union— for failing to ban or effectively enforce the prohibition on imports of goods made with forced labor. The measure, announced Tuesday night by Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, relies on Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act and is the White House's most ambitious step yet to rebuild its tariff policy.

  • Wednesday, June 3rd 2026 - 23:00 UTC

    Falklands pass £216m budget under 'live within our means' principle amid fiscal pressures

    Among the principles set in January are a ban on borrowing for operating purposes and the requirement to keep uncommitted reserves equivalent to at least 1.5 times operating expenditure

    The Falkland Islands Government presented its 2026/27 budget to the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday, the first of the Assembly elected in December, with an Appropriation Bill of 216.3 million pounds and under the guiding principle of “living within our means.” The plan seeks to balance the territory's finances amid pressure on revenue and an ambitious infrastructure investment program.

  • Wednesday, June 3rd 2026 - 20:58 UTC

    Falklands approve accelerated housing scheme with 30 modular homes at Murray Heights

    The government has repeatedly identified the housing shortage as one of the territory's main challenges

    The Falkland Islands Government announced that its Executive Council had approved a plan to accelerate housing provision in Stanley, in response to the urgent need to expand the housing stock. The initiative provides for the development of infrastructure for 60 new plots at Murray Heights, intended for modular housing solutions, and the construction of 30 modular units.

  • Wednesday, June 3rd 2026 - 16:54 UTC

    Bolivia's blockade crisis risks tipping into civilian clashes, analysts warn

    The conflict, now close to a month old, has left at least nine dead

    Bolivia's political crisis threatens to spill over into confrontations between urban and rural populations, after nearly a month of road blockades that have disrupted supplies of food, medicine and fuel —especially in the Andean region— and left at least nine people dead. Analysts Pedro Portugal and Gabriela Canedo warned of the danger in remarks to the news agency EFE, pointing to clashes fueled by an ethnic and cultural fracture and by the alleged inaction of Rodrigo Paz's government, whose resignation the mobilized sectors are demanding.

  • Wednesday, June 3rd 2026 - 16:38 UTC

    Ukraine hits St. Petersburg oil terminal with drones as Russia's economic forum opens

    A column of black smoke rose over the port, in view of forum attendees, while Pulkovo airport suspended or diverted about thirty flights.

    Ukraine launched a mass drone attack against several Russian regions early on Wednesday and struck an oil terminal in St. Petersburg, coinciding with the opening of the country's main economic forum. Russia's Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 345 drones over 15 regions, including Moscow and Leningrad, where St. Petersburg is located.