On Monday, the centre-right government of Argentine President Mauricio Macri will put a new cap on increases natural gas prices. Argentina’s Supreme Court demanded the government justify within 10 days the “social and economic aspects” of the 400 percent increase in gas bills. The federal court in La Plata solicited the country’s highest court which, on Tuesday, decided to suspend all bill increases. The court in La Plata said that the government failed to implement the mandatory public audits before imposing the price hike in April.
Read More
On Tuesday, the budget bill for 2017 financial services and general government spending has been approved in the House of Representatives with several clauses that seek to toughen sanctions on Cuba. The clauses limit "people to people" exchange trips, forbid the granting of trademark rights and intellectual property with businesses or properties confiscated by the Cuban government, restrict financial transactions with entities tied to the Cuban military and prohibit the use of funds for trafficking in confiscated property.
Read More
On Sunday, interim President Michel Temer told the Folha de S.Paulo newspaper that to help reduce the fiscal deficit for 2017 he will consider the privatization of the Congonhas (SP) and Santos Dumont (RJ) airports. There are two models under discussion one would keep the government airport authority Infraero as a minority partner while giving most control to private companies, the other would keep Infraero as the biggest stockholder (with 51 percent of shares) while private companies would manage the airports.
Read More
The Philippines filed a lawsuit to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in Hague. It concerned the China's claims to treat a large part of the South China Sea as its own economic zone. Court rules in favor of Philippines over China and agreed that claims are unfounded. In 1940s China draw on the map „nine-dash line” that includes large stretches of the South China Sea. This time, China has appointed a demarcation line, which gave them sovereignty over almost the entire eastern part of the South China Sea to the island of Borneo. The Tribunal said it has no legal basis and it's unlawful under the UNCLOS convention. There was no evidence that China had historically exercised exclusive control over the waters or resources.
Read More
The home secretary Theresa May became the new Prime Minister of Great Britain. She took the position after David Cameron. Cameron announced he is stepping down following the Brexit decision, in which voters cast ballots in favor of leaving the European Union. May also took the position of the leader of the Conservative Party. Theresa May is Britain’s 75th prime minister today, after David Cameron formally hands over his resignation to the queen at Buckingham Palace. She is the second woman Prime Minister of Great Britain after Margaret Thatcher.
Read More
Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro called for the opening of the border with Colombia for 12 hours. The governor of the Venezuelan border state of Tachira said that both countries plan to hold a summit on the issue of reopening borders in the coming days. It was opened to allow thousands of countrymen to buy food and medicines. According to officials, around 35,000 people entered Colombia and returned home with ample of food supplies.
On 9th of July 2016 elections in Western Sahara took place. Elections were in Algerian territory in Sahrawi refugee camp. The new president of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) became Brahim Ghali. Ghali received 1766 from 1895 votes. Ghali was the founder of the Polisario movement in SADR, firstly it was a movement against Spain, after - against Morocco. In his first speech on the presidential post, he represented the program and the plan of actions. He insisted, that people are looking for a peaceful resolution of conflict, but all the time are ready to begin a resistance to the Moroccan regime.
Read More
