Monday Memo: Chile-Peru Maritime Dispute — CELAC Summit — Argentina’s Economy — São Paulo Protests — Belize-Guatemala Agreement
Likely top stories this week: the International Court of Justice will rule on the Chile-Peru Maritime border; the CELAC Summit begins on Tuesday in Havana, Cuba; Argentina begins easing restrictions on purchasing US dollars; protesters of the World Cup clash with police in Sao Paulo; Belize and Guatemala sign an agreement at the OAS. International … Read more
USTR Head Announces Enviro Trade Negotiations in Davos
U.S. Trade Representative Mike Froman announced today in Davos that the United States would join others including China, Canada, the EU, and Japan to negotiate freer global trade in environmental goods. An economic sector estimated at over $950 billion annually, the market for such products is already significant and it is only expected to grow. … Read more
Shifting Mood in Canada–U.S. Relations
In a recent blog, I described Canada’s new and emerging American economic challenge with our neighbor to the south as it was heading towards energy self-sufficiency with its consequent impact on the manufacturing sector of its economy. While Canada has increased its trade with new partners in recent years and is actively pursuing new markets … Read more
Independent Watchdog Says NSA Program Is Illegal
The Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, an independent federal privacy review board, has concluded that the National Security Agency (NSA)’s phone call record collection program is illegal and should be discontinued. The 238-page report published yesterday finds that the spying program “lacks viable foundation” under Section 215 of the Patriot Act, violates the First … Read more
Argentina Adopts New Restrictions on Online Purchasing
The Argentine government adopted new legislation limiting online buying on Tuesday in an effort to defend domestic production. The resolution, adopted by Argentina’s tax agency, the Administración Federal de Ingresos Públicos , and published in the Boletín Oficial, restricts Argentines to two tax-free purchases of up to $25 on foreign-based websites per year, with a … Read more
FIFA Threatens Curitiba Over World Cup Readiness
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (International Federation of Association Football—FIFA) warned officials in the Brazilian city of Curitiba on Tuesday that it could be excluded as a host site of the 2014 World Cup if preparations remain behind schedule. FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke said that renovation of the 43,000-capacity Arena da Baixada stadium … Read more
Human Rights Group Gives Grim View of the Americas
The New York City-based rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) released its annual World Report, presenting a dismal outlook on human rights in the Americas. This year’s report focused specifically on some of the most troubled countries in the region, including Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, and Venezuela, as well as regional economic powerhouses Brazil … Read more
Argentina Invests in Power Grid After Blackouts
Argentine government officials formalized a $500 million plan to improve the distribution of electricity in Buenos Aires this week, but remained strongly opposed to raising utility rates in order to alleviate the city’s ongoing energy crisis. The measure comes after the hottest heat wave on record prompted a series of power outages, leaving hundreds of … Read more
Brazil’s Acre State Asks to Close Borders, Keep Haitians Out
The Brazilian state of Acre has asked the government to temporarily close the Brazil-Peru border to control Haitian migration. Acre’s secretary of justice and human rights, Nilson Mourão, said the levels of Haitian migration into the region are unsustainable and have strained the capacity of social services in the area. Since the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that … Read more
Brazil Endorses International Decade for People of African Descent
On Monday, December 23, 2013, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution establishing the International Decade for People of African Descent, which will run from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2024. The aim will be to raise social consciousness in the fight against prejudice, intolerance, xenophobia, and racism. The resolution follows a series … Read more
Garzón Dismisses Bogota Mayor Rumors, Becomes Ambassador
Colombian Vice President Angelino Garzón accepted an offer on Wednesday made by President Juan Manuel Santos and Chancellor María Ángela Holguín to become the Colombian ambassador to Brazil. Garzón had recently been linked to a position as provisional mayor of Bogota, to replace embattled Mayor Gustavo Petro. But in an open letter, Garzón negated the … Read more
Obama to Announce NSA Reforms
President Barack Obama is expected to announce changes to the United States’ ongoing surveillance program on Friday at the Justice Department. The address will likely focus on the National Security Agency’s (NSA) spying program, which gathered data on billions of telephone calls made to, from or within the United States. While President Obama has the … Read more
Venezuela dividida entre víctimas y victimarios
En agosto de 2010, Andrés Izarra, ex ministro de Comunicaciones de Venezuela, explotó en carcajadas durante una entrevista con CNN mientras escuchaba el balance de homicidios que ofrecía el director de una ONG local. El funcionario–cuya esposa había sido asaltada y resguardada por sus escoltas apenas un año antes–golpeaba el escritorio para reforzar cuan absurdos … Read more
Obama to Meet with North American Leaders
President Barack Obama will travel to Toluca, Mexico on February 19 for the annual North American Leaders Summit, the White House announced Tuesday. The president will meet with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to discuss economic competitiveness, entrepreneurship, trade and investment, and citizen security. The White House has applauded … Read more
Snowden and the Call for Clemency
Since the Edward Snowden–National Security Agency (NSA) affair exploded in the media last summer, some world leaders, such as Angela Merkel of Germany, have since discovered that they were under some surveillance by the U.S. security apparatus. The negative reaction that followed the German chancellor discovering the bugging of her cell phone is evidence that … Read more
