Politics

• Friday, August 1st 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Banco Santander admits sale talks with Venezuelan gov.

  

  Spanish bank Santander, one of Europe's leading financial institutions admitted holding talks to sell the bank it owns in Venezuela to the government. The announcement comes a day after President Hugo Chavez said he wanted to nationalize the institution which operates as Banco de Venezuela and has been in the country for over a century.

• Friday, August 1st 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Bolivia's recall vote confirmed in spite of controversy

  

  A recall vote in Bolivia that could force out President Evo Morales and a group of opposition governors will go ahead on August 10 despite a possible change in voting rules, vice president Alvaro Garcia Linera said on Friday.

• Thursday, July 31st 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Memorial service at wreck of River Plate Battle HMS Exeter

  

  HMS Kent, one of the Royal Navy's most modern warships, looked back at history as she remembered one of her illustrious World War II predecessors last Sunday. The Portsmouth based frigate, currently undertaking tasking in the Far East, laid wreaths over the recently found wreck of cruiser HMS Exeter during a ceremony attended by the British Ambassador to Indonesia, veterans and descendants of the sinking and the diver who discovered the wreck.

• Thursday, July 31st 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Falkland Islands: Appointment of FIDC General Manager

  

  David Waugh has been appointed as the new permanent General Manager of the Falkland Islands Development Corporation.

• Wednesday, July 30th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Chile-Australia sign comprehensive free trade agreement

  

  Chilean Foreign Minister Alejandro Foxley is currently in Australia today and on Wednesday will be signing in Canberra a Free Trade Agreement, plus another battery of accords with Australian authorities.

• Wednesday, July 30th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Controversial first shipment of US beef arrives in South Korea

  

  The first shipment of United States beef under a controversial import deal arrived in South Korea on Tuesday, officials said, amid lingering public concerns over mad cow disease.

• Wednesday, July 30th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Pinochet's daughter seeks office in Chile politics

  

  The eldest daughter of Chile's former leader Augusto Pinochet is to run for a seat in municipal elections in October.

• Wednesday, July 30th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Farm leaders become most popular figures in Argentina

  

  Argentine farm leaders involved in the recent stand off with the administration of Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner have soared in public opinion consideration according to the latest survey released this week in Buenos Aires by Giacobe and Associates.

• Wednesday, July 30th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Argentine farmers reject gov. attempts to divide them

  Argentine farmers' organizations have anticipated that they will only meet with government officials as a group and reject efforts to divide them. The warning follows statements from Argentina's new Agriculture minister who argued the liaison committee lacks “representativeness” hinting he would talk to each farm association on an individual basis.

• Tuesday, July 29th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Paraguay's incoming government reiterates support for Mercosur

  

  Paraguay is not planning to abandon Mercosur “in spite of the overall disappointment because we have received no advantages” said the incoming Foreign Affairs minister of president elect Fernando Lugo.