International

Brazilian fraud case reopened against US lawmaker Santos

Photo: OLIVIER DOULIERY / AFP

| By AFP |

Prosecutors in Brazil said Wednesday they have reinstated over-decade-old fraud charges against US Republican Congressman George Santos, who is under fire for admitting he made up large parts of his resume.

The first-term congressman from New York, whose 2022 election win helped the Republican Party secure a narrow majority in the House of Representatives, is accused in Brazil of using a stolen checkbook to buy some $700 in merchandise from a store in 2008, according to local media.

It is the latest in a mounting pile of legal woes for the 34-year-old, who also faces a criminal investigation in New York after admitting he lied about graduating from university, working at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, and otherwise “embellishing” his resume.

“The Rio de Janeiro state prosecutor’s office has requested to reopen the case,” the office said in an e-mail to AFP.

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The case had been archived because investigators were unable to locate Santos.

But “the accused has now been elected to Congress in the United States, meaning he has a verified address,” the prosecutor’s office said.

It said it had filed a petition Tuesday to reopen the case with a criminal court in Niteroi, a city outside Rio where the alleged crime occurred.

Santos was not immediately reachable for comment.

He would face up to five years in prison if convicted in Brazil, which has an extradition treaty with the United States — though prosecutors said as a first-time offender he would be eligible for an alternative sentence, such as community service.

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The son of Brazilian immigrants, Santos has ties to the South American country that are among the aspects of his life story under scrutiny.

Prosecutors said they were unable to determine whether he had Brazilian citizenship.

He has said his grandparents were European Jews who fled “Stalin’s persecution” and then Hitler’s Nazis to emigrate to Brazil.

But after US media investigations questioned his claim he was Jewish and found his grandparents were in fact born in Brazil, he told the New York Post: “I am Catholic. Because I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background I said I was ‘Jew-ish.’”

An investigation in the New York Times meanwhile raised questions over how Santos was able to lend his campaign $700,000 after claiming on a financial filing in 2020 that he was making $55,000 a year.

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Central America

El Salvador and Paraguay approve 2026–2028 cooperation program

The governments of El Salvador and Paraguay approved the 2026–2028 Cooperation Program, which includes six joint development projects, according to Salvadoran Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Adriana Mira.

Mira stated that El Salvador will act as the “main provider of cooperation,” contributing five initiatives focused on road infrastructure, tourism, and local development. She also noted that one of the projects will be led by the Paraguayan side, although no further details were disclosed.

The agreement was reached during the Second Meeting of the Joint Commission on Technical and Scientific Cooperation between both countries.

According to Paraguay’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the First Meeting of the Political Consultation and Bilateral Coordination Mechanism was also held, with the participation of Vice Minister Víctor Verdún.

In an official statement, the Paraguayan government reported that both delegations agreed to identify mechanisms to promote competitiveness, economic growth, and market access. They also committed to signing agreements related to air transport cooperation.

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International

Macron meets Machado, stresses need for democratic transition in Venezuela

Emmanuel Macron met on Monday at the Élysée Palace with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, where they discussed the importance of advancing a democratic transition in Venezuela.

In a message shared on social media, Macron highlighted Machado’s commitment to freedom and stressed the need to achieve a transition that is peaceful and respects the will of the Venezuelan people.

“I received María Corina Machado, Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Together, we discussed her commitment to freedom and the importance of achieving a democratic, peaceful transition in Venezuela that respects the will of its people,” he wrote.

For her part, Machado expressed her “deep gratitude” to Macron and to France for their support of democracy and freedom in Venezuela.

“We have gone through a long and painful journey, and we are now very close to freedom. Venezuela will become a nation of free and equal men and women—prosperous, safe, and united,” she said.

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International

Trump says Iran seeks new talks after failed negotiations in Pakistan

Donald Trump said on Monday that Iran has reached out to United States to resume negotiations, following the collapse of recent talks held in Islamabad.

“We’ve been contacted by the other side,” Trump told reporters, adding that Iran is eager to reach a deal “at all costs.” Speaking from the Oval Office, he reiterated that his main objective is to prevent the Islamic Republic from acquiring nuclear weapons and warned that he will not allow Iran to “blackmail” the international community.

After negotiations between Washington and Tehran ended without agreement on Sunday, Trump announced that the U.S. would move to block the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for global oil trade.

The waterway had already been disrupted by Iran in response to a U.S. and Israeli offensive launched on February 28, causing significant shocks to the global economy.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump further warned that any Iranian vessel attempting to bypass the U.S. naval blockade in the strait would be “eliminated immediately.”