Politics

• Friday, March 26th 2010 - 00:46 UTC

  Bolivia: not the moment to pressure Chile for ocean access

  

  Bolivian President Evo Morales, along with the Bolivian Army and Navy, celebrated Sea Day this week, an annual holiday mourning Bolivia’s loss of ocean access to Chile following the Pacific War 131 years ago.

• Friday, March 26th 2010 - 00:43 UTC

  Former KGB agent buys The Independent and Independent on Sunday for £ 1

  

  Former KGB agent and London’s Evening Standard owner Alexander Lebedev is buying The Independent and Independent on Sunday for £1, it has been confirmed. The Russian oligarch has snapped up the titles for the same price as a single copy of The Independent.

• Thursday, March 25th 2010 - 20:45 UTC

  First minefield cleared in Falkland Islands – thanks to Zimbabweans

  

  ZIMBABWEAN de-miners were cheered and clapped by a large crowd of Falklands residents today as the, “brave and hardworking” experts demonstrated confidence in their work by holding a soccer game in the recently cleared Minefield 25 on Sapper Hill near Stanley.

• Thursday, March 25th 2010 - 13:04 UTC

  Falklands politicians an important resource says British Government official

  

  “AN important international diplomatic resource” is how Foreign and Commonwealth (FCO) official Colin Roberts visiting the Falkland Islands describes Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs).

• Thursday, March 25th 2010 - 05:47 UTC

  Former Spanish president warns on China’s growing influence in Latinamerica

  

  Former Spanish president Felipe González and several experts in economics and politics warned about the growing influence of China in Latin America, which nevertheless could also help to balance the international scenario according to a forum held in New York University sponsored by the Euro-America Foundation.

• Thursday, March 25th 2010 - 03:20 UTC

  Latinamerica, “winning region of the financial crisis”, says optimistic IDB

  

  Latin American countries' banking and financial officials were optimistic Tuesday about their future development, saying most economies in the region were strengthened after the global financial crisis.

• Thursday, March 25th 2010 - 03:18 UTC

  Mercosur-Israel free trade agreement becomes effective

  

  The free trade agreement between Mercosur and Israel, the first out of the region for the South American block, became effective this week for Paraguay. For the rest of Mercosur full members, Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay the official date is April first.

• Thursday, March 25th 2010 - 03:13 UTC

  Chilean navy clears of mines the most extreme south of islands

  

  The Chilean Navy celebrated this week the destruction of the 200th antipersonnel mine in the extreme south Horno Island, thus eliminating Field 113 from the list of territories that were planted with mines in 1982.

• Thursday, March 25th 2010 - 03:05 UTC

  UN report points to “clear inequities” in province, class and gender in Argentina

  

  Argentina is confronting “clear inequities” as reflected by the incidence of “avoidable” maternal deaths during childbirth, the frequency of abortion among poor women and the concentration of new HIV infections in the most marginalized sector of the population, according to a U.N. report presented this week.

• Thursday, March 25th 2010 - 02:59 UTC

  Mercosur expects a next move from EU to advance trade discussions

  

  Mercosur expects the European Union to improve its offer so that both sides can advance towards a free trade agreement, according to Brazil and Uruguay’s Foreign Affairs ministers Celso Amorim and Luis Almagro who met in Rio do Janeiro this week.