South America

CHINCHINA (Colombia), Sept 14 (NNN-KBC) — Kenyan Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has appealed to Colombia to partner with Kenya to boost coffee trade in Kenya.

Speaking while attending a Meeting with the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation in Chinchina, Colombia, the DP said that Kenya is on its way to reclaim its glory in the Coffee trade through overseeing reforms in the sector.

QUITO, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso on Monday presented the country's army with 20 Turkish-made Cobra II armored vehicles to help fight organized crime.

"Today I am pleased to deliver these 20 Turkish-made Cobra II vehicles," Lasso said during the handover ceremony in the capital Quito, adding that 15 more units will arrive in October.

"This fleet will serve to defend our sovereignty and our security," he said.

Sept 11 (Reuters) - President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva rowed back on Monday from saying Brazil would ignore a war crimes arrest warrant for Russian leader Vladimir Putin, while saying he would review Brazil's membership in the International Criminal Court.

On Saturday, while in India for a Group of 20 nations meeting, Lula told a local interviewer that there was "no way" Putin would be arrested if he attended next year's summit, which is due to be held in Rio de Janeiro.

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Chile on Monday was commemorating the 50th anniversary of the coup led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet, which ushered in a brutal military dictatorship that lasted almost 17 years.

The commemoration began with a ceremony at the La Moneda presidential palace, which was bombed by warplanes at the start of the coup.

LIMA, Sept 11 (NNN-ANDINA) — The United Kingdom (on Nov 9, 2022) was the last country to allow visa-free entry of Peruvians into its territory. 

It is worth knowing that there are other countries like Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, and more, where Peruvian nationals can travel using only their passport and/or ID card.

SANTIAGO, Sept 10 (Reuters) - The presidents of Chile and Mexico called for the strengthening of democracy in Latin America during a joint address on Sunday to commemorate the 50th anniversary of a 1973 coup in Chile, hours after a peaceful march culminated in violent clashes with police.

Monday will mark half a century since the overthrow of President Salvador Allende by the regime of General Augusto Pinochet, which ushered in 17 years of brutal military rule that saw some 40,000 people imprisoned, disappeared, tortured or killed.

SANTIAGO, Sept 9 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Chilean President Gabriel Boric Font and his four living predecessors signed a so-called “commitment for democracy” document as the 50th anniversary of the coup d’état that brought General Augusto Pinochet Ugarte to power between 1973 and 1990 looms over.

The present and past heads of state Eduardo Frei (1994-2000), Ricardo Lagos (2000-2006), Michelle Bachelet (2006-2010/2014-2018), and Sebastián Piñera (2010-2014/2018-2022) sought to “defend democracy from authoritarian threats,” it was explained at La Moneda.

CARACAS, Sept 9 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Venezuela’s National Assembly gave the green light for President Nicolás Maduro to leave the country on an international tour of “friendly” nations, it was reported in Caracas.

The Legislative Branch unanimously approved a request for the head of state to be absent for more than five days on a State visit to the People’s Republic of China and other friendly countries “in representation of the highest interests of the nation,” according to Congress Speaker Jorge Rodríguez.

LIMA, Sept 7 (NNN-ANDINA) – Peru’s President, Dina Boluarte, yesterday unveiled changes to six cabinet posts, an unexpected cabinet shuffle that came just four months since the last shake-up.

The changes reassigned Daniel Maurate from heading the Justice and Human Rights Ministry, a job he assumed in Apr, to heading Labour and Employment Promotion. Eduardo Arana, a lawyer from the Inca Garcilaso de la Vega University, took over Maurate’s previous position.

SAO PAULO, Sept 5 (NNN-CMA) – At least four people died yesterday, after an extratropical cyclone triggered floods and landslides in the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, authorities said.

A man was electrocuted when his home was inundated, while another young man and a couple died when their cars were swept away by floods.

The storms caused floods in more than 15 cities in the state that borders Argentina and Uruguay, including the state capital, Porto Alegre.

In June, 16 people died in the state after an extratropical cyclone made landfall.