Presidents Javier Milei of Argentina and Santiago Peña of Paraguay met Wednesday in Asunción to stress their shared commitment to economic freedom and deregulation as a path to prosperity. Their encounter took place at the same time most other heads of State convened in Tegucigalpa (Honduras) for the Celac Summit.
Paraguayan President Santiago Peña Friday emphasized his administration’s commitment to supporting the middle class, a group he believes has been overlooked by past policies favoring either macroeconomic stability for businesses or targeted aid for the poor.
World Bank Group (WBG) President Ajay Banga is due in Asunción Tuesday for a historic visit to Paraguay, the first by a man in his position in nearly 50 years since Robert McNamara’s in 1976. Invited by Paraguayan President Santiago Peña, Banga aims to strengthen bilateral ties, focusing on sustainable development, job creation, and private investment.
The Paraguayan Public Prosecutor's Office has filed charges against seven former officials from the administration of former President Mario Abdo Benítez (2018-2023), including three former ministers, for alleged crimes such as criminal association, usurpation of public office, false denunciation, and disclosure of secrets. The accused include former Interior Minister Arnaldo Giuzzio, former head of the National Anti-Corruption Secretariat René Fernández, and former official Carlos Arregui from the Secretariat for the Prevention of Money Laundering (Seprelad), among others.
Paraguayan President Santiago Peña Thursday celebrated the creation of over 96,000 new jobs since the start of his administration, according to a study from the National Institute of Statistics (INE) released in Asunción which showed a significant increase from the third quarter of 2023 to the fourth quarter of 2024, with major growth in commerce, restaurants, hotels, community services, and construction sectors.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier will be touring Uruguay, Paraguay, and Chile between February 28 and March 8, it was announced Monday in Berlin. The head of state will attend Yamandú Orsi's inauguration in Montevideo on March 1. He is also scheduled to meet with Paraguay's Santiago Peña and Chile's Gabriel Boric Font.
Paraguayan President Santiago Peña Friday underlined the importance of trade openness and multilateralism during his speech at the World Trade Organization's (WTO) headquarters in Geneva. Peña highlighted “the importance of global integration to strengthen trade and resilience in the face of uncertainty,” the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIC) said in a statement.
Switzerland's Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Helen Budlinger told Paraguayan President Santiago Peña that her country was interested in expanding businesses with Asunción and with all of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur). She made those remarks Thursday as she welcomed Peña to the non-European Union nation which thus covets a separate Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
As controversial US Ambassador Marc Ostfield completed his assignment in Asunción, the US diplomatic mission was left temporarily under Chargé d'Affairs Amir Masliyah -who has been Deputy Mission Chief since July 2022.
Paraguayan President Santiago Peña met Sunday in Washington DC with Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo González Urrutia, whom many believed should have been sworn in on Jan. 10 last after winning the controversial July 28, 2024, elections where the incumbent Nicolás Maduro claimed to have prevailed despite producing no evidence thereto besides declarations from offices controlled by the Chavista regime.