Chilean President Michelle Bachelet on Thursday opened a gathering of leaders from Latin America, Spain and Portugal with a call for renewed efforts to fight poverty.
Bachelet called on the 22 participating governments to increase concern for social issues and poverty while much of the region is experiencing economic growth.
"This a moment to face the new challenge of our region, the postponed challenge of reaching a social pact," Bachelet said, inaugurating the Ibero-American Summit.
Also speaking at the ceremony, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said "social cohesion is essential to face the challenge of climate change."
Summit leaders will sign a region-wide social security accord that would allow migrant workers in Latin America, Spain and Portugal the transfer of social security benefits between their nations, a measure that would benefit nearly 6 million workers, according to Chilean Foreign Minister Alejandro Foxley.
Foxley also said the participating countries will work over the next year on a series of measures to ensure full respect of the rights of migrants.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was to arrive early yesterday despite protests at home against the constitutional reforms proposed by his government.
Scuffles broke out in Santiago when Ivan Moreira, a right-wing Chilean legislator, arrived at the Venezuelan embassy with a letter saying he opposed Chavez' visit. He was met by a group of Chavez' supporters led by socialist Senator Alejandro Navarro.
Police quickly broke up the altercation.
Presidents attending the summit are expected to condemn terrorism and call for an end to the US embargo against Cuba.
The presidents of Mexico and the Dominican Republic were not attending the summit in order to direct recovery efforts after flooding in Mexico's Tabasco state and the destruction wrought by Tropical Storm Noel.
Russia and Ukraine have exchanged prisoners of war in the latest such swap that saw the release of hundreds of captives and was brokered with the help of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), officials said on Monday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that 189 Ukrainian prisoners, including military personnel, border guards and national guards — along with two civilians — were freed. He thanked the UAE for helping negotiate the exchange. The Russian Ministry of Defense said that 150 Russian troops were freed from captivity as part of the exchange in which each side released 150 people. The reason for the discrepancy in numbers
A shark attack off Egypt’s Red Sea coast killed a tourist and injured another, authorities said on Sunday, with an Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs source identifying both as Italian nationals. “Two foreigners were attacked by a shark in the northern Marsa Alam area, which led to the injury of one and the death of the other,” the Egyptian Ministry of Environment said in a statement. A source at the Italian foreign ministry said that the man killed was a 48-year-old resident of Rome. The injured man was 69 years old. They were both taken to hospital in Port Ghalib, about 50km north
The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Poland on Tuesday expressed concern about “the political crisis” in Georgia, two days after Mikheil Kavelashvili was formally inaugurated as president of the South Caucasus nation, cementing the ruling party’s grip in what the opposition calls a blow to the country’s EU aspirations and a victory for former imperial ruler Russia. “We strongly condemn last week’s violence against peaceful protesters, media and opposition leaders, and recall Georgian authorities’ responsibility to respect human rights and protect fundamental freedoms, including the freedom to assembly and media freedom,” the three ministers wrote in a joint statement. In reaction
BARRIER BLAME: An aviation expert questioned the location of a solid wall past the end of the runway, saying that it was ‘very bad luck for this particular airplane’ A team of US investigators, including representatives from Boeing, on Tuesday examined the site of a plane crash that killed 179 people in South Korea, while authorities were conducting safety inspections on all Boeing 737-800 aircraft operated by the country’s airlines. All but two of the 181 people aboard the Boeing 737-800 operated by South Korean budget airline Jeju Air died in Sunday’s crash. Video showed the aircraft, without its landing gear deployed, crash-landed on its belly and overshoot a runaway at Muan International Airport before it slammed into a barrier and burst into flames. The plane was seen having engine trouble.
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