Venezuela’s narcissist-Leninist President Hugo Chavez is not getting his money’s worth for the billions of dollars he is spending in public relations abroad: According to a new poll, his approval ratings in Latin America could hardly be worse. The Miami Herald’s Andres Oppenheimer has published a newly-released poll of 20,200 people in 18 Latin American countries [...]
Billionaire Sebastian Pinera led Chile’s presidential vote and is seen the favorite to win a run-off and lead a political shift in Latin America’s most stable economy after 20 years of leftist rule. Pinera, an airline magnate who ranks No. 701 on Forbes’ global rich list, won 44 percent in Sunday’s voting, shy of the more [...]
Nearly two decades after the global arms race of the Cold War ended, many Latin America watchers today are worried about a new military standoff: between Colombia and Venezuela. As before, Washington is integral to the debate. Tensions on both sides of the border have run high for several years, but a joint U.S.-Colombia military [...]
Last week may have been the most important one of the year for troubled Honduras. It brought a number of important decisions both in and outside of the country, each of which will have implications for years to come. The first decision was that of the majority of Hondurans in Sunday’s presidential vote to elect Porfirio [...]
Colombian President Alvaro Uribe said Venezuela has put up an illegal trade embargo that is becoming a “Berlin Wall,” cutting off the South American neighbors. Uribe, in Portugal to attend a Heads of State Ibero-american Summit , criticized Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez for not attending the meeting and spoke out against Venezuela’s suspension of trade with [...]
Ahead of disputed Honduran presidential elections which are set to take place in five days, the government of current President Roberto Micheletti has recently stated that if the United States recognizes the vote, other countries would follow suit. “Panama already said it would recognize us. The United States will recognize us. Two countries that are important to [...]
“Hugo Chávez’s Sunday TV and radio program Aló Presidente is not exactly known for its brevity or reassuring tone“, began Michael Shifter’s article, recently published in Foreign Policy magazine. The Venezuelan president’s chief communications vehicle often signals his preferred next steps in the 11th year of his grandiose “Bolivarian” reformation of the nation. So it was cause [...]
The Spanish newswire EFE is carrying a small story about how Russia has become the second-largest destination for exports from Uruguay after Brazil. From the Russia side of things, this will likely remain below the radar, but it is worth noting from a South American perspective for a few reasons. One, following China’s ascent to being [...]
In the first of a series of anti-corruption campaigns, the Arcadia Foundation took up the task of investigating the dubious dealings of Honduran government officials and questionable government practices. In a series of events spurred on by the investigative efforts of Arcadia Foundation, the murky dealings of the Honduran enterprise of Hondutel were exposed. Using [...]
Colombia today warned Venezuela not to brush aside last month’s deaths of nine Colombians on the border as paramilitary gang violence, an incident that fueled tensions between the Andean neighbors. The administration of Colombian President Alvaro Uribe feel similar skepticism to that of the international community, cynicism that could hinder foreign investment in both regions and [...]
