Four crew members killed and 25 intoxicated including rescue workers was the final toll of an ammoniac escape/explosion on board a Korean jigger moored at the port of Montevideo.
The controversial Botnia-Orion pulp mill under construction in Uruguay and challenged by Argentina, is keeping to the timetable and forecasted to be officially inaugurated sometime in the third quarter of this year (July-September), according to reliable sources from the Finnish corporation.
Representatives from Uruguay and Argentina will sit to dialogue about the pulp mill controversy at the end of February or beginning of March in Madrid, according to diplomatic sources in Montevideo.
United States president George Bush will be visiting Uruguay next March 8/9 as part of a Latinamerican tour that also includes Brazil, Mexico, Guatemala and Colombia, was announced Wednesday in Montevideo.
The glitter is back at the Uruguayan peninsula long known as South America's summer playground for the rich and famous — a Latin version of Monaco or the Hamptons of New York.
A small group of Argentine pickets protesting the construction of pulp mills in a shared and jointly managed river with neighboring Uruguay took their complaints to Montevideo Monday morning where they distributed leaflets but finally had to be escorted under protection by police forces.
Uruguay promised to consider all proposals from the Spanish Crown envoy who is attempting to facilitate a dialogue between Argentina and Uruguay that are confronted over the construction of pulp mills in a shared border river.
Following months of negotiations the Uruguayan government signed Thursday a controversial trade agreement with United States in spite of dissent inside the left leaning ruling coalition over how far closer links with Washington will lead.
Argentina on Wednesday reiterated confidence in Spain's dialogue facilitating efforts and called for collaboration in reaching a solution for the diplomatic conflict with Uruguay over the construction or pulp mills.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague turned down on Tuesday a request by Uruguay to force Argentina to end blockades of roads and bridges linking the neighbouring countries in protest over the construction of a paper mill on the Uruguayan side.