Brazil, Latin America: Week in Review
Brazilian, Argentine Dictatorships Received Soviet Weapons During Falklands War
April 24, 2012 By Staff
Today in Latin America
Top Story — Brazilian newspaper O Globo reported that the Brazilian government helped ship arms from the Soviet Union to Argentina during the Falklands War between Argentina and Britain in 1982. O Globo cited formerly classified military and diplomatic documents that were recently released by the Brazilian government, revealing that Cuba helped mediate the deal between Brazil and Argentina’s anti-Communist military regimes and the USSR, which offered to supply weapons and intelligence equipment to Argentina in its unsuccessful 74-day war against Britain for sovereignty over the disputed Falkland Islands. Brazil allowed weapons originating in Libya to pass through the northeastern city of Recife before continuing to Argentina. Argentina and Britain both commemorated the 30th anniversary of the Falklands War this year amid continued argument over who can rightfully claim the islands as their own.
Read more from Fox News Latino.
Headlines from the Western Hemisphere
North America
- The U.S. Supreme Court will begin hearing arguments on Arizona’s immigration law starting Wednesday, with a decision expected to be made in late June.
- A Pew Hispanic Center study reported Monday that the number of undocumented immigrants from the U.S. to Mexico has dropped from 7 million in 2007 to 6.1 million in 2011, the largest drop in decades.
- Mexican presidential candidate Enrique Peña Nieto called for a probe into Wal-Mart’s Mexican affiliate for allegations that Wal-Mart de Mexico bribed officials to gain market dominance.
Caribbean
- Puerto Rico’s Electoral Commission began an investigation Monday into alleged voter fraud committed during the island’s March 18 political primaries by two major political parties.
- A Cuban Communist Party official said this weekend that more than 50 percent of Cuba’s economy is expected to move into the “non-state sector”.
- U.S. authorities detained a Jamaican man attempting to smuggle $193,046 out of Philadelphia International Airport on April 15.
- The 2012 Investment Forum opened in Miami Beach, FL on Monday in an effort to convince Haitians living in the U.S. to return home and invest in Haiti.
Central America
- International Court of Justice heard arguments starting Monday in a dispute between Nicaragua and Colombia over the San Andres archipelago’s three main islands–San Andres, Providencia and Santa Catalina.
- Guatemala’s Grupo de Apoyo Mutuo (GAM) reported that kidnappings in the country dropped 42 percent between 2008 and 2011.
Andes
- Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez made a call from Cuba to Venezuela to dispel rumors that he was dead, saying he’d be returning home shortly.
- U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said that Secret Service and military staff implicated in a prostitution scandal during the Summit of the Americas in Cartagena have lost their security clearances.
- Peru is evaluating a request by the U.S. to extradite Joran Van der Sloot, currently serving a 28-year sentence for the murder of Peruvian Stephany Flores, to face charges in the death of U.S. teen Natalie Holloway.
Southern Cone
- Workers at Brazil’s Belo Monte Dam went on strike for better working conditions on Monday.
- Chilean poet Nicanor Parra earned the Cervantes Prize on Monday. His grandson received the award on his behalf.
- Brazil, Spain, Mexico and Britain were chosen as seeded teams for the Olympic men’s soccer tournament in the London 2012 games.
Image: JorgeBRAZIL @ Flickr.
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