Politics

• Wednesday, December 2nd 2009 - 12:31 UTC

  Magallanes region unemployment remains steady above 8%

  

  Magallanes Region in the extreme south of Chile has dropped from fourth to sixth place in the ranking of regions with the least unemployment, according to the latest release which shows the rate jumped to 8.2% in the August-October quarter. This represents a 6.5 percentage point increase over the same period a year ago and half a point compared to the previous July-September quarter.

• Tuesday, December 1st 2009 - 13:10 UTC

  Mercosur/EU political support to bolster technical meetings

  

  Mercosur officials together with representatives from Spain, Portugal and the European Community agreed Monday to provide greater emphasis to the technical meetings with the purpose of advancing towards an association agreement between the two blocks.

• Tuesday, December 1st 2009 - 12:59 UTC

  Argentina protests Lisbon Treaty which has Falklands as associate territory

  

  With the coming into effect December first of the European Union Lisbon Treaty, Argentina has instructed its embassies to protest EU pretensions that Malvinas, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands and surrounding maritime spaces, and the Argentine Antarctic sector are EU associate territories.

• Tuesday, December 1st 2009 - 12:55 UTC

  RAF investigating “minor incident” involving a Typhoon in the Falklands

  

  An investigation has been launched after minor damage was found on two UK Royal Air Force aircraft shortly after they had completed an in-flight refuelling sortie near the Falkland Islands.

• Tuesday, December 1st 2009 - 12:41 UTC

  Second woman receives Military Cross as Falklands veteran sells medal

  

  Their extraordinary acts of bravery are separated by 27 years. But as the first woman in the Royal Navy to be awarded the Military Cross proudly collected her medal at Buckingham Palace today a veteran who received the equivalent award for his actions in the Falklands put his medal up for sale.

• Tuesday, December 1st 2009 - 11:05 UTC

  Ibero-American summit divided over the Honduras political situation

  

  Portugal's Foreign Affairs Minister Luis Amado said on Monday that Portugal is working as a mediator among Ibero-American countries to achieve a consensus on the Honduras political situation that is threatening the 19th summit’s final declaration.

• Tuesday, December 1st 2009 - 11:03 UTC

  Uruguayan president-elect begins round of talks on four basic issues

  

  Uruguayan president elect Jose Mujica and the leader of the junior opposition Colorado Party Pedro Bordaberry met Monday afternoon and agreed to collaborate at technical level in several issues that are considered crucial for the country.

• Tuesday, December 1st 2009 - 10:35 UTC

  Mujica and Mrs. Kirchner to meet next week in Montevideo

  

  Argentine president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will be meeting next week with Uruguay’s president-elect Jose Mujica, announced Argentine ambassador in Montevideo, Hernán Patiño Mayer.

• Tuesday, December 1st 2009 - 08:34 UTC

  Lobo wins Honduran election and calls for “national unity dialogue”

  

  Honduras conservative presidential candidate Porfirio Lobo declared Monday he won Sunday’s elections while his main contender accepted defeat and de facto president Roberto Micheletti announced he was ready to hand power and step down.

• Tuesday, December 1st 2009 - 07:35 UTC

  Mercosur, India and African nations begin trade and investment talks

  

  Brazil launched this week in Geneva a round of negotiations to further liberate trade between Mercosur, India and the Union of Nations from Austral Africa with the purpose of ratifying south-south cooperation, while global negotiations in the framework of the Doha Round remain stalled.