MercoPress https://en.mercopress.com/ South Atlantic News Agency en Copyright 2026, MercoPress. https://en.mercopress.com/web/img/en/mercopress-logo.gif MercoPress http://en.mercopress.com/ <![CDATA[Peru extends voting to Monday as Fujimori and Lopez Aliaga emerge as runoff contenders]]> The official ONPE count, with 47% of ballots processed at the time of publication, showed Fujimori in first place with 17.05%, followed by López Aliaga at 15.36% Peru will hold an unprecedented supplementary voting day on Monday: more than 52,000 citizens unable to cast ballots on Sunday due to logistical failures will vote at 187 polling stations in Lima and in the overseas jurisdictions of Orlando, Florida, and Paterson, New Jersey. The National Elections Jury (JNE) authorized the extension and urged polling firms to suspend the release of surveys to avoid influencing remaining voters.

]]> Mon, 13 Apr 2026 10:55:00 GMT <![CDATA[Uruguay hosts DEA summit that warns of new drug trafficking routes in South America]]> Uruguayan Interior Minister Carlos Negro opened the conference and stressed that regional security requires coordinated action beyond national borders Uruguay hosted the 2nd Regional Coordination Meeting of the US Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) Southern Cone Division, a conference held on April 9–10 in Montevideo that brought together representatives from Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and the United States to strengthen cooperation against drug trafficking and transnational organized crime.

]]> Mon, 13 Apr 2026 00:27:00 GMT <![CDATA[Peru closes a troubled election day and begins a lengthy count with outcome uncertain]]> Photo: Angela Ponce / Reuters More than 10,000 polling centers closed in Peru on Sunday after a ten-hour voting day disrupted by logistical failures that forced authorities to extend the schedule by one hour, to 6:00 p.m. local time. The National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE) reported that 99.8% of polling stations were installed, but 15 voting centers in Lima — containing 211 stations — could not be set up, leaving 63,300 voters unable to cast ballots.

]]> Sun, 12 Apr 2026 23:49:00 GMT <![CDATA[Chilean Air Force conducts first-ever aerial refueling of US F-35 fighters]]> The maneuver was carried out on April 4 in international airspace, as the fifth-generation fighters were en route to Santiago to participate in FIDAE 2026 The Chilean Air Force (FACh) completed for the first time an aerial refueling operation involving two U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II fighters, in a milestone that demonstrates growing interoperability between the two countries and the level of modernization achieved by Chile's military aviation.

]]> Thu, 09 Apr 2026 21:36:00 GMT <![CDATA[Latin America faces fertilizer vulnerability; IICA and TFI agree joint plan amid Hormuz crisis]]> Global fertilizer supply chain faces simultaneous pressures: Chinese restrictions on phosphate exports, US tariffs that reduced nutrient imports, and the disruption of transit through Hormuz The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the U.S.-based Fertilizer Institute (TFI) announced a partnership to secure fertilizer supply across the Americas, amid logistical disruptions and price volatility worsened by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz due to the war between the United States, Israel and Iran.

]]> Thu, 09 Apr 2026 01:13:00 GMT <![CDATA[“Has anyone talked about democracy? No”: OEI secretary criticizes Trump's oil-driven approach to Venezuela]]> The Trump administration has implemented a series of measures to facilitate US investment in Venezuela's energy sector The secretary general of the Organization of Ibero-American States for Education, Science and Culture (OEI), Mariano Jabonero, said that US President Donald Trump's primary interest in Venezuela is energy-related and has nothing to do with promoting democratic values or civilization.

]]> Tue, 07 Apr 2026 21:06:00 GMT <![CDATA[British ambassador calls Bolivia's Falklands/Malvinas support for Argentina “unacceptable”]]> Porter recorded a video outside Bolivia's Foreign Ministry building in which he declared that “the Falkland Islands are British, their sovereignty is not in question” and cited the 2013 referendum Argentina on Friday thanked Bolivia for its support on the Falklands/Malvinas sovereignty claim and called “unfortunate” the remarks by the British ambassador in La Paz, Richard Porter, who branded the Bolivian position “deeply disappointing and unacceptable.”

]]> Sat, 04 Apr 2026 03:03:00 GMT <![CDATA[Bolivia: probe into ring that stole and adulterated fuel imported through Chilean ports]]> YPFB tanker trucks with a capacity of up to 33,000 liters allegedly were illegally offloading between 700 and 1,000 liters at the Chilean ports of Arica and Iquique Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz on Tuesday denounced the existence of an international ring dedicated to stealing and adulterating gasoline and diesel imported into the country, with operations detected in Chile, Argentina, and Paraguay. According to the president, the scheme originated under the previous management of Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB), the state-owned fuel supply company.

]]> Wed, 01 Apr 2026 10:37:00 GMT <![CDATA[Brazil hit hardest as Latin America adjusts to Trump tariffs after one year]]> The region shows uneven results one year after the start of Washington's tariff war. Photo: Brazil's Santos port (APS) One year after the Trump administration launched its tariff offensive against more than 180 countries, Latin America presents a mixed picture: some economies lost competitiveness in the U.S. market, while others redirected exports or negotiated agreements to cushion the blow.

]]> Mon, 30 Mar 2026 15:01:00 GMT <![CDATA[US allows Russian oil tanker to reach Cuba in easing of energy blockade]]> Russia had announced weeks earlier that it was considering sending crude to Cuba on humanitarian grounds, even though the decision amounted to a direct challenge to Washington The United States authorized the passage of a Russian oil tanker loaded with crude bound for Cuba, in the first easing of the de facto energy blockade Washington has imposed on the island since the start of the year, The New York Times reported, citing a U.S. official.

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