Politics

• Tuesday, August 25th 2009 - 22:20 UTC

  UK avionics controversy delays delivery of eight Chinook choppers to Afghanistan

  

  The United Kingdom Ministry of Defence has denied claims that eight Chinook helicopters have not been usable since they were bought in 2001 because of a failed attempt to design its own software for them.

• Tuesday, August 25th 2009 - 22:08 UTC

  Obama confirms nomination of Bernanke as head of the Federal Reserve

  

  President Barack Obama confirmed Tuesday that he has nominated Ben Bernanke for another term as chairman of the US central bank, the Federal Reserve. The president took a break from his summer holiday to make the announcement.

• Tuesday, August 25th 2009 - 15:15 UTC

  Venezuela’s Mercosur incorporation approval ever more distant

  

  Mercosur has enough problems and of different kinds and does not need to include another one by voting for the incorporation of Venezuela to the trade block, according to Paraguayan senator Marcelo Duarte.

• Tuesday, August 25th 2009 - 15:08 UTC

  Chile’s Bachelet among the world’s most powerful women

  

  Forbes magazine last week listed Chilean President Michelle Bachelet as the 22nd most powerful woman in the world – up three notches from last year.

• Tuesday, August 25th 2009 - 14:58 UTC

  Strike paralyzes container activities in Buenos Aires port

  

  Container shipments are paralysed in the port of Buenos Aires due to a union conflict that is causing huge losses, the Argentine press reported.

• Tuesday, August 25th 2009 - 14:55 UTC

  Drug and drink offences, main causes for arrests of Britons overseas

  

  Drug offences now account for a fifth of all arrests of Britons abroad, Foreign Office (FO) figures show. There are currently 22 British nationals facing capital charges for drugs worldwide, the FO said.

• Tuesday, August 25th 2009 - 02:54 UTC

  Falklands Next of kin visit “abused”

  

  THE agreement on the Lan Flight carrying Argentine next of kin to the Falkland Islands has been, “…abused by the other side,” stated Councillor Mike Summers at a debriefing for local media today.

• Tuesday, August 25th 2009 - 02:47 UTC

  Opinion poll confirms a run-off in Uruguay’s October presidential election

  

  The Uruguayan ruling coalition Broad Front seems to have recovered momentum and leads in public opinion polls with 44% vote intention, although the opposition is still ahead with 47%, according to the latest survey published Monday in one of Montevideo’s dailies.

• Tuesday, August 25th 2009 - 02:43 UTC

  Brazilian cabinet divided over taking military torturers to trial

  

  Taking to trial those responsible for human rights abuses during the military dictatorship that ruled Brazil from 1964 to 1985 has divided the administration of President Lula da Silva, particularly some of its most influential ministers, according to the Sao Paulo press.

• Monday, August 24th 2009 - 11:28 UTC

  Brazil reaffirms influence in Bolivia and support for Evo Morales

  

  President Lula da Silva reaffirmed Brazil’s influence during his visit to Bolivia where he announced the opening of the Brazilian market to Bolivian textiles and extended a loan to build a leg of the bi-oceanic corridor which will eventually join Santos in the Atlantic with Iquique on the Pacific.