Blog entries

In the last two months, the world has witnessed a wave of diplomatic support for a Palestinian state from a region that is continuing to extend its foreign policy imprint: Latin America. But will this trend yield any measurable progress toward a two-state Palestinian-Israeli agreement—or produce a negligible effect on Palestine’s quest for full autonomy … Read more

Following President Obama’s call for the U.S. to “pursue agreements with Panama and Colombia” in his State of the Union address this week, Colombian Vice President Angelino Garzón said in Washington DC that he is convinced there is a majority in Congress to approve the deal. “We hope and we stress that 2011 is the … Read more

By all accounts, 2010 was a challenging time for Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on the foreign policy front. The low point came when Canada failed to win a non-permanent seat in a secret vote at the United Nations Security Council in October, the first time since 1948. Canada had held the prestigious two-year position … Read more

In what some are suggesting was a strategic move to keep a party out of power, a candidate in the race for governor in Mexico’s Guerrero state has dropped out and endorsed his opponent. On Wednesday, Marcos Parra Gomez of the Partido Acción Nacional (PAN) announced that he would instead encourage his followers to support … Read more

From the Americas Society/Council of the Americas. AS/COA Online’s news brief examines the major—as well as some of the overlooked—events and stories occurring across the Americas. Check back every Wednesday for the weekly roundup. Sign up to receive the Weekly Roundup via email. SOTU: Obama Announces LatAm Trip During Tuesday night’s annual State of the … Read more

U.S. President Barack Obama announced in his State of the Union address last night plans to travel to Brazil, Chile and El Salvador this coming March “to forge new alliances for progress in the Americas.”  Obama is scheduled to arrive in El Salvador on March 23 after first visiting Brazil and then Chile. The March … Read more

The president spoke at least three times this evening during his State of the Union on issues of importance to the Western Hemisphere: immigration, trade and his desire to travel to Latin America in March. He was strong on immigration, saying he is willing to work with anyone to address immigration issues comprehensively as a … Read more

Siete, dicen, es el número cabalístico que marca la primera crisis matrimonial seria, de esas que acaban en ruptura definitiva. Pero dado que el tiempo es hoy una categoría tan relativa y de cada vez menos duración, las crisis conyugales suelen comenzar bastante antes. Eso parece haber sucedido en Bolivia con el matrimonio de Evo … Read more

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos is in Paris this week before heading to the World Economic Forum and at the top of his agenda is expanding trade and investment ties with France and the European Union as a whole. Today, prior to meeting with President Nicolas Sarkozy on Wednesday, Santos met with French business leaders  … Read more

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is traveling today to the central Mexican city of Guanajuato for one day of bilateral talks with her counterpart, Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa. According to a Department of State press release, the main discussion points will cover joint efforts in the areas of organized crime, economic collaboration, border security, … Read more

Minister Rodrigo Rivera has announced that in the first week of February he will travel to Washington DC to consult his U.S. counterpart, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, on Colombia’s U.S.-backed efforts to combat drug trafficking. During his visit, Mr. Rivera’s discussions will focus on violence sparked by nacrotrafficking organizations. The administration of Colombian President Juan … Read more

In Mexico, most medium-size and large companies provide their employees vales de despensa, or grocery coupons, as part of their monthly benefits to workers. These were originally instituted to provide tax breaks to both businesses and individuals. The value of grocery coupons is not declared as part of one’s personal income (so it is not … Read more

Real concerns about government debt and deficits are bringing politicians to a moment of truth.  Whether you are a recently elected member of Congress or a finance minister in Canada or in a Canadian province about to deliver the next budget, you know the exercise will be painful and the road arduous.  Earlier this month … Read more

Meeting on Wednesday at the La Moneda presidential palace in Santiago, Chile, Presidents Sebastián Piñera of Chile and Alan García of Peru agreed to respect the ruling of the International Court of Justice regarding their dispute over maritime borders and to focus on greater economic integration. Appearing before reporters in a lengthy meeting and treating … Read more

When songwriter Billy Joel penned this classic song about New York City, it had a big nostalgic overtone. In short, it is very hard to be away from New York City for long. The new Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, has sounded a similar tone about New York State and its past leadership role … Read more