Blog entries

Chilean President Sebastián Piñera, arrived in Madrid yesterday ahead of tomorrow’s European Union-Latin America and Caribbean summit, and has already announced agreements to strengthen Chile-EU ties and to host the 2012 summit in Chile. Mr. Piñera, who took office earlier this year in the wake of Chile’s devastating February earthquake, thanked European leaders for their … Read more

In the next ten years, Rio de Janeiro  is going to host both the finals of the World Cup of soccer and the 2016 Summer Olympics. Can the city that coined the word favela (and with it all the connotations of desperation and lawlessness) and the reputation as one of the most crime-ridden cities in … 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. Secretary Clinton Stresses Private-Sector Role in Hemispheric Relations At the Council of … Read more

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will travel this weekend to Tehran for talks with his Iranian counterpart President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The leaders will discuss Iran’s nuclear amibitions and Lula da Silva is expected to try to persuade Iran to revisit an enriched uranium swap deal before other world powers impose additional sanctions against … Read more

Colombian presidential hopeful Antanas Mockus, said in an interview yesterday that, if he is elected, he would seek to normalize trade with Venezuela and use diplomatic channels to diffuse tensions between the two Andean countries, which have intensified in recent years. Mr. Mockus is Colombia’s Green Party candidate for president and has taken the lead … Read more

In a world shaped by bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, where goods and services cross borders with relative ease, it is often difficult to say the same about people. However, President Rafael Correa of Ecuador has been a leader in championing integration efforts, in particular open border policies in the Western Hemisphere. Ecuador’s 2008 constitution … Read more

The nationwide fury over Arizona’s SB 1070 has yet to diminish. And rightfully so. When this new law goes into effect at the end of July, any American citizen can be asked for their documents if they look to be undocumented. This is just plain un-American. As President Obama said at a Cinco de Mayo … Read more

Bolivia’s main trade union, Central Obrera Boliviana (COB) called this week for an indefinite general strike after sporadic rallies and riots last week followed the Morales administration’s decision to cap wage increases for government employees at 5 percent. Demonstrators contend the increase is not enough to compensate for diminished purchasing power and a rise in … Read more

The ongoing environmental disaster in the Gulf of Mexico caused by the sinking of a BP oil rig has reignited the debate about the risks of offshore drilling for fossil fuels. This issue was raised in the presidential election campaign of 2008, where the proponents of ending the ban on offshore drilling coined the phrase … Read more

Mexican authorities this week handed over custody of Mario Villanueva, the former governor of the state of Quintana Roo, to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to face charges of narcotrafficking and money laundering.  The extradition was seen as a long-fought victory for U.S. diplomatic efforts to bring him to justice in the United States … Read more

A new article published today in Americas Quarterly outlines eight steps that Latin American governments can take to combat criminal activity. The article, written by William Bratton, the former New York City police commissioner and former Los Angeles Police department chief, and William Andrews, a veteran law enforcement expert, emphasizes that “substantial reforms in police … Read more

Police fired tear gas on indigenous protesters in Quito yesterday as they demonstrated against a new law that they claim will restrict communities’ water supplies. The law, Ley de Recursos Hídricos, would create a “Central Water Authority” (Autoridad Única del Agua (AUA), which would be presided over by a cabinet-level presidential appointee and would oversee … Read more

President Porfirio Lobo confirmed today that he was invited to the EU-Latin American summit scheduled to be held on May 18 in Madrid, but that he would only attend the EU-Central American meeting.  The invitation of Honduran President Lobo to the EU-Latin American summit has riled some leaders of the UNASUR bloc.  Several countries are … Read more

Esta semana se celebró el día mundial de la libertad de prensa y el gremio amaneció con muy buenas noticias: Dos colombianos, Hollman Morris y Claudia Julieta Duque fueron galardonados con sendos premios internacionales por su defensa de este derecho fundamental. El primero, quien además será este año un Nieman Fellow en Harvard,  recibió el … 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. Mexico, Germany Host Climate Talks Germany and Mexico jointly hosted this week … Read more