Politics

• Friday, November 19th 2010 - 02:01 UTC

  Brazil’s ruling party main ally putting pressure on president-elect Rousseff

  

  Brazil’s ruling Workers Party main ally in Congress Brazilian Democratic Movement, PMDB, has formed its own legislative group hoping to dispute some of the most strategic posts in the new congress that takes office next January first.

• Thursday, November 18th 2010 - 21:48 UTC

  Russia plans to collect 33 billion USD in three year privatization plan

  

  The Russian government approved a three year (2011/2013) privatization plan paving the way for a sale of federal assets which could yield 1 trillion roubles (33 billion US dollars), Economic Development Minister Elvira Nabiullina said in Moscow following a cabinet meeting.

• Thursday, November 18th 2010 - 21:16 UTC

  Full blown campaign to garner support for Raúl’s Cuban model reforms

  

  The Cuban government has launched an aggressive campaign on its proposed economic reforms as it tries to whip up public opinion enthusiasm and in its own ranks ahead of a Communist Party congress to approve them in April.

• Thursday, November 18th 2010 - 20:33 UTC

  Argentina/Paris Club debt negotiations have a deadline: April 2011

  

  Finance Secretary Hernán Lorenzino said Argentina wants to successfully conclude negotiations with the Paris Club Group of creditor nations involving 6.7 to 8 billion US dollars in defaulted debt before April.

• Thursday, November 18th 2010 - 18:53 UTC

  EU unveils plans for a “greener” 60 billion Euro Common Agricultural Policy

  

  EU farm spending, worth almost 60 billion Euros annually, should no longer be based on previous subsidy levels for farmers, the European Commission has said. But subsidies are still needed to protect Europe's food supplies and rural diversity, it believes.

• Thursday, November 18th 2010 - 18:51 UTC

  UK banks’ exposure to Irish lenders above £ 139 billion

  

  Ireland's banking problems are likely to have a direct effect on the United Kingdom's battered institutions. According to the Bank of International Settlements, UK banks have a total exposure to Irish lenders of 222 billion US dollars (£139bn).

• Thursday, November 18th 2010 - 18:35 UTC

  Ireland’s dilemma: sovereign solvency or rescuing the banking system

  

  Emergency talks were being held in Dublin overnight as fears about Ireland’s ailing banking system forced the deployment of a team from the European Union, the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank.

• Thursday, November 18th 2010 - 17:08 UTC

  UK promises stronger and closer relationship with Overseas Territories

  

  A wide range of issues of mutual interest and concern were addressed by the UK Minister for the Overseas Territories Henry Bellingham and leaders from the Overseas Territories. The OTs Consultative Council is currently meeting in London.

• Thursday, November 18th 2010 - 02:31 UTC

  Mercosur and Unasur need an institutional framework to keep advancing

  

  Brazilian president-elect Dilma Rousseff must inject more life to the institutional strength of Mercosur and the Union of South American Nations, Unasur, and then push for integration with Central America and the Caribbean, said Marco Aurelio García, President Lula da Silva advisor on foreign affairs.

• Thursday, November 18th 2010 - 02:26 UTC

  Family farming as the backbone to ensure countries’ “food sovereignty”

  

  Representatives from Mercosur, Africa, China, India and multilateral organizations such as the United Nations called for the right to “food sovereignty”, thus preventing the international corporations from taking control of the seeds’ market.