International
Bolsonaro welfare plan shakes Brazil markets, sparks resignations
AFP
A proposal by Brazil’s far-right President Jair Bolsonaro to dramatically increase welfare payments to the country’s underprivileged groups a year ahead of elections shook markets Thursday and triggered resignations at the Ministry of Economy.
The program could cost the government an extra 30 billion reais ($5.3 billion dollars) at a time when inflation is already high and exceed the government spending ceiling established by law.
The government announced earlier this week that it was setting up a new social welfare program to replace the “Bolsa Familia” system created by the leftist administration of former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
The new program would start in November with a 20 percent increase in benefits paid to nearly 17 million Brazilians in need.
Coming just a year before a presidential election in which Bolsonaro is widely expected to be defeated by Lula da Silva, the move was seen by several analysts as a pre-election sweetener.
The measure rattled investors. The Sao Paulo stock market fell 2.75 percent, while the price of the US dollar rose to 5.65 reais, its highest level in six months.
Concerned by the plan, several economic officials quit their posts, including top treasury officials Bruno Funchal and Jeferson Bittencourt, authorities said.
Bolsonaro denied that his project, whose source of funding has not been specified, is against the law.
“There are around 16 million people registered with the ‘Bolsa familia’, and though the financial aid reaches an average of 192 reais, many people receive 40, 50, 60 reais. What we are saying is: 400 reais for all,” he said Thursday.
Bolsonaro also offered to “help” 750,000 truckers with compensation for increases in the price of diesel.
The president made the announcements at a time when his popularity is at its lowest level since he took office in 2019, and amid high inflation and high unemployment.
International
Argentina detects first local cases of Influenza A (H3N2) Subclade K
Argentina’s National Administration of Laboratories and Health Institutes (ANLIS) “Dr. Carlos G. Malbrán” has confirmed the detection of three cases of influenza A (H3N2) corresponding to subclade K in the country. These are the first locally recorded cases of this variant, which has become predominant in several countries in the Northern Hemisphere in recent months and is associated with higher transmissibility.
The cases were identified through the National Network of Laboratories and Sentinel Units and confirmed by the National Reference Laboratory of INEI-ANLIS using genomic sequencing techniques. According to health authorities, the cases involve two adolescents from the province of Santa Cruz, detected as part of the Ambulatory Monitoring Strategy for Acute Respiratory Infections, and a child who had been hospitalized in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.
In all three cases, patients experienced mild illness and recovered without complications. Officials did not specify whether any of the affected individuals had a recent travel history.
The jurisdictions involved have already launched the corresponding epidemiological investigations and are responsible for ensuring timely medical care for the detected cases. According to the latest integrated surveillance report, the circulation of influenza and other respiratory viruses in Argentina remains within expected levels for this time of year.
International
Pentagon confirms Trump pick for SouthCom as U.S. military pressure grows
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has nominated a Marine Corps lieutenant general to lead U.S. Southern Command (SouthCom), the Pentagon announced on Friday, as Trump said he does not rule out the possibility of a war with Venezuela.
If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Marine Corps Lieutenant General Francis L. Donovan would replace an admiral who, according to media reports, criticized recent attacks on vessels allegedly linked to drug trafficking off the Venezuelan coast.
Washington has deployed a significant military presence in both the Caribbean and the Pacific, where it has carried out airstrikes against boats it claims were used by suspected drug traffickers. According to an AFP tally based on official information, the attacks have left more than 100 people dead.
The Venezuelan government has denounced what it describes as a plot to overthrow President Nicolás Maduro and seize the country’s oil resources.
In a statement published Friday on the Pentagon’s website, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced that Trump had nominated Lieutenant General Donovan to serve as commander of U.S. Southern Command.
SouthCom is responsible for U.S. military operations in Central and South America, as well as parts of the Caribbean.
According to the Department of Defense, Donovan currently serves as deputy commander of U.S. Special Operations Command. His appointment is subject to Senate confirmation.
International
Trump moves to reclassify marijuana as less dangerous substance
Former U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous addictive substance, a move aimed at encouraging medical research without immediately opening the door to federal-level decriminalization.
Trump said that “people were begging” him to make the decision, particularly individuals suffering from chronic pain. He stressed, however, that the measure “is not at all a decriminalization” of marijuana for non-medical use.
“I’ve always told my children: don’t use drugs, don’t drink, don’t smoke,” Trump added. He is a well-known teetotaler.
A senior government official described the decision as “common sense” during a briefing with reporters, noting that marijuana and CBD-based products — a compound derived from cannabis known for its relaxing properties — are already widely used in the United States by patients dealing with chronic pain.
Most U.S. states currently allow the use of cannabis for medical purposes, and more than 20 states, along with the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., have also legalized recreational use.
Argentina detects first local cases of Influenza A (H3N2) Subclade K
Pentagon confirms Trump pick for SouthCom as U.S. military pressure grows
Trump moves to reclassify marijuana as less dangerous substance
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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