Politics

• Monday, February 4th 2013 - 05:18 UTC

  Argentine central bank reserves at their lowest level since December 2007

  

  Argentina’s central bank reported that at the end of January it had reserves totalling 42.65 billion dollars which is the lowest level since President Cristina Fernandez took office in December 2007. At the time the central bank international reserves totalled 46.2 billion dollars. Only in April 2007 were reserves at a lower level, 38.6bn dollars.

• Monday, February 4th 2013 - 05:09 UTC

  Timerman begins ‘Malvinas week’ in London but no meeting with Hague included

  

  Argentine Foreign minister Hector Timerman begins Monday a busy ‘Malvinas’ week in London with meetings scheduled in Parliament and later at the embassy with representatives from 18 different European groups that support UK/Argentina dialogue on the Falklands’ sovereignty

• Monday, February 4th 2013 - 05:01 UTC

  Paraguay promises international investigation into the death of Oviedo in helicopter crash

  

  The Paraguayan government announced on Sunday that it will invite international experts to investigate the circumstances of the death of presidential candidate and controversial political figure Lino Oviedo Saturday night when the helicopter transporting him crashed.

• Monday, February 4th 2013 - 04:55 UTC

  Cameron’s Malvinas change in policy is “evidence of weakness and internal crisis”

  

  The British government’s decision to deny a meeting between UK and Argentina foreign ministers is proof of “weakness” and evidence of “the internal crisis situation” in the ruling coalition led by Prime Minister David Cameron, said Argentine Foreign minister Hector Timerman.

• Monday, February 4th 2013 - 04:51 UTC

  Argentina prepares for the ‘mother of all battles’ against ‘holdout’ bondholders

  

  Argentina has made its final written arguments ahead of a February 27 US courtroom showdown against “holdout” bondholders demanding full payment of capital plus interests for sovereign debt from the default of more than a decade ago.

• Monday, February 4th 2013 - 04:46 UTC

  Berlusconi promises to end with the “technical” and “left wing” taxmen

  

  Italy's former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi announced his “last great electoral and political battle” with a sweeping promise to cut taxes and the cost of government if his centre-right wins elections this month.

• Monday, February 4th 2013 - 04:37 UTC

  Blatter calls on all member associations to help combat corruption in soccer

  

  World soccer's governing body cannot battle corruption in the game alone and national associations must also join in, according to FIFA president Sepp Blatter. He believes all of FIFA's 209 member associations plus the continental confederations should follow its example by setting up independent ethics committees to investigate and punish any corrupt behaviour by their officials.

• Saturday, February 2nd 2013 - 20:07 UTC

  Argentina lashes back at the IMF but announces new CPI for this year

  

  Following Friday’s IMF ‘declaration of censure’ on Argentina because of the lack of reliability in its inflation and GDP stats, and the country’s first reaction virtually describing the Fund as mother of all financial evils, Minister of Economy Hernan Lorenzino announced a new ‘national’ Consumers Prices Index to be implemented in the course of this year and which will replace the current GBA-IPC.

• Saturday, February 2nd 2013 - 19:55 UTC

  Jewish organization rejects Argentina/Iran deal to resolve 1994 bombing

  

  Argentina’s leading Jewish organization, AMIA, contrary to a few days ago when meeting Foreign minister Hector Timerman, rejected the deal signed by the government of President Cristina Fernandez and Iran to create an independent international ‘truth commission” to investigate the 1994 terrorist attack on AMIA and demanded the redrafting of a new accord.

• Saturday, February 2nd 2013 - 19:45 UTC

  Foreign Office insists Argentina was informed in advance Falklands’ MLAs would attend Hague/Timerman meeting

  

  The last round of the Falklands’ dispute between the UK and Argentina seems to have exposed a new blunder of Minister Hector Timerman, since according to the Foreign Office from the very request last December for a meeting with Foreign Secretary William Hague this month in London, the Argentine official was clearly informed that Falklands’ representatives would be present when the particular issue of the Islands was raised.