Politics

• Thursday, March 8th 2012 - 09:35 UTC

  BBC documents reveal French double role during the Falklands conflict

  

  In his memoirs, former UK Defence Secretary Sir John Nott describes France as Britain's “greatest ally” during the Falklands War. However, formerly secret papers and other evidence seen by the BBC show that was not the full story. Before the war, France sold Argentina's military junta five Exocet missiles.

• Thursday, March 8th 2012 - 06:42 UTC

  Spanish King rings Cristina Fernandez to cool YPF taking over campaign

  

  Spain’s Foreign Secretary Manuel Garcia Margallo admitted there is great concern in Madrid over the situation of Repsol-YPF in Argentina, which is questioning the oil corporation for not having invested sufficiently or paid sufficient taxes, and revealed that King Juan Carlos has been on the phone with President Cristina Fernandez.

• Thursday, March 8th 2012 - 06:33 UTC

  Argentine veterans insist with identifying remains of 123 comrades buried in Falklands

  

  Argentine veterans from the 1982 Falklands/Malvinas war with Britain reiterated on Wednesday a request for the identification of 123 unknown comrades buried in the Falkland Islands.

• Thursday, March 8th 2012 - 06:21 UTC

  Chavez will return home from Cuba next week, says Colombian president

  

  Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos Venezuela's Hugo Chávez will return home next week from Cuba where he is recovering from surgery to remove a cancerous tumour.

• Thursday, March 8th 2012 - 06:06 UTC

  Brazilian surprise: basic rate down to 9.75%, lowest in years

  

  Brazil’s Central bank on Wednesday surprised analysts by accelerating the pace of interest rate cuts, bringing borrowing costs to 9.75%, below 10% for only the second time on record as it seeks to revive growth.

• Thursday, March 8th 2012 - 01:37 UTC

  Argentina blasts EU and describes Trade spokesperson statements as “false”

  

  Argentina categorically rejected ‘false’ statements from the EU Trade spokesperson relative to a clarification request to Argentina, allegedly not replied, involving relations of the UK with Buenos Aires and also questioned the EU ‘silence’ on the Malvinas sovereignty question.

• Thursday, March 8th 2012 - 00:12 UTC

  Morrissey performs with “hate T-shirts” and insists the Falklands are Argentine

  

  Morrissey's band performed in front of 15,000 fans in Argentina wearing “We Hate William and Kate” T-shirts, courting further controversy over his stance on the Falkland Islands.

• Wednesday, March 7th 2012 - 23:24 UTC

  EU calls on Argentina to respect international trade commitments

  

  The European Union has called on Argentina to respect international trade commitments, following on the announcement by the Minister of Industry to boycott the purchase of imports originating in the UK in an escalating row over the Falklands.

• Wednesday, March 7th 2012 - 17:25 UTC

  Argentina to demand a review of the South Atlantic fisheries agreement

  

  President Cristina Fernandez announced that Argentina will request the review of the South Atlantic fisheries agreement, because the UK and the Falklands are not abiding by the ‘protocols’ signed in the early nineties.

• Wednesday, March 7th 2012 - 17:23 UTC

  Cristina Fernandez meets Piñera next week: Falklands air link in the agenda

  

  Argentine president Cristina Fernandez is scheduled to travel to Chile next week to meet with her peer Sebastian Piñera and the Falklands issue expected to outstand in the bilateral agenda, particularly air links with the Islands.