
Julian Assange, founder of the anti-secrecy organisation Wikileaks, has said the conviction of US Army Private Bradley Manning on spying charges is a dangerous precedent.

Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), José Miguel Insulza, on Tuesday presented in London the Report on the Drug Problem in the Americas during a forum organized by Chatham House in which political authorities and experts in the issue took part.

An ambitious strategy to expand United Kingdom’s education exports industry – revealed for the first time as worth £17.5 billion to the economy – has been published.

Foreign Affairs minister José Manuel García-Margallo has told his UK counterpart, William Hague that Spain will continue to enforce strict Gibraltar border checks “whenever necessary” because this was in line with Madrid’s EU obligations and that Guardia Civil officers were searching for contraband.

Uruguayan president Jose Mujica was ironic about the conditions Paraguayan president elect Horacio Cartes demanded for his country’s return to Mercosur, but also in a veiled message called for ‘intelligence and pragmatism’ recalling that Paraguay is a landlocked country.

“The party is over” and Latinamerican countries should be concerned since the Chinese economy is slowing down, apparently entering a low growth period and many in the region have become notoriously ‘China-dependent’ after a decade of strong expanding sustained bilateral relations.

Uruguay is too expensive in dollar terms and needs to adapt quickly because the adjustment will come anyway ‘and will be painful’ unless inflation is brought under control and costs equilibrium is reached with Brazil with a competitive dollar at 25 Pesos.

Following on the steps of the IMF (and World Bank) which has strongly questioned Argentine official stats (mainly inflation and GDP growth), the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, Eclac, also joined the club of disbelievers since in its last report on the regional economy appealed to other stats’ sources.

Boosted by auto and metal-mechanic manufacturing industrial production in Argentina during June increased 3.8% compared to the same month a year ago, according to the latest release from Indec. Since April and May were also positive this means that the second quarter was up 3.5% over a year ago.

Mr. Alejandro Betts spoke on 20 June this year at the UN Special Committee on Decolonisation, as a petitioner on the “Falklands (Malvinas) Question.” It has been brought to my attention that his speech included a highly distorted account of my visit to the Islands to observe the referendum on behalf of the South Atlantic Council.