International
The Foreign Minister of Uruguay assures that Venezuela is consolidating itself as “a dictatorship”
The Foreign Minister of Uruguay, Omar Paganini, assured on Tuesday that Venezuela is consolidating itself as “a dictatorship” and that the electoral process of that country “has been completely distorted.”
This was assured at a press conference held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in which he emphasized that “the worst forecasts” were confirmed after the disqualification of María Corina Machado and that Corina Yoris could not register with the National Electoral Council.
“Yesterday the Government of Uruguay along with many countries in South America issued a statement very concerned about what is happening regarding the electoral process in Venezuela and unfortunately today the worst forecasts have been confirmed,” the chancellor stressed.
In that way, he referred to the statement in which the Governments of Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay expressed their “serious concern” about the “persistent impediments” in the registration of Venezuela’s presidential candidates before the National Electoral Council.
“They let some candidates register that evidently the Venezuelan regime has no concern that they can gather a flow of votes,” said Paganini, who recalled that “those who mean a risk” could not do so.
“The Venezuelan electoral process has clearly been completely distorted and unless these things are reversed, it does not admit a surprise but it also indicates that Venezuela is consolidated as a dictatorship that moves away from any possible democratic practice,” he emphasized.
Asked about whether Uruguay will recognize the result of that country’s elections, Paganini explained that that will be seen when the time comes, but said that the situation is very distorted.
“The elections are for people to choose between alternatives. The elections are not for people to choose what the Government of the day wants. It is not the attitude of the Venezuelan regime and therefore it is consolidated in a dictatorial practice,” he said.
Beyond this, the minister said that Uruguay understands it as “valuable” to have diplomatic representation in Venezuela, because relations are with countries and not with governments.
Machado ratified on Tuesday that he will remain on the electoral route ahead of the presidential elections on July 28, without explaining how he will do it, given the impossibility of the Platform of Democratic Unity (PUD) to register Yoris within the deadline established by the National Electoral Council (CNE), which ended on Monday.
On the other hand, President Nicolás Maduro made official on Monday, before the CNE, his candidacy for the elections of July 28, in which he will compete for a third term in power, which he has occupied since 2013.
International
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump criticized what he described as unfair fees imposed on American ships passing through the Panama Canal and threatened to demand that Washington take back control of the strategic waterway.
“Our Navy and commerce have been threatened in a very unjust and reckless way. The rates that Panama charges are ridiculous,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The president-elect also denounced the growing influence of China in the canal, a situation he called concerning as U.S. businesses depend on the waterway to transport goods between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
“This complete scam against our country will end immediately,” he stated.
The Panama Canal, completed by the United States in 1914, was handed over to Panama under the 1977 treaty signed by Democratic President Jimmy Carter. Panama took full control of the commercial passage in 1999.
“It was exclusively for Panama to manage, not China or anyone else,” Trump said. “We would never allow it to fall into the wrong hands!”
“If Panama cannot guarantee a ‘safe, efficient, and reliable’ operation of the canal, we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us in its entirety, without a doubt,” the Republican added.
Panamanian authorities did not immediately respond to Trump’s statements. While he will assume office on January 20, Trump has been exerting his political influence in the final days of President Joe Biden’s administration.
Five percent of global maritime trade passes through the Panama Canal, which allows vessels traveling from Asia to the U.S. East Coast to avoid the long and dangerous route around the southern tip of South America.
The countries that use the Panama Canal the most are the United States, China, Japan, and South Korea.
In October, the Panama Canal Authority reported earnings of nearly $5 billion in the last fiscal year.
International
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Russian President Vladimir Putin promised more “destruction” in Ukraine on Sunday, in response to a drone strike that hit a residential building in the city of Kazan, located in central Russia, on Saturday.
Russia accused Ukraine of launching a “massive” drone attack, which struck a luxury apartment block in Kazan, about 1,000 kilometers from the border.
Videos shared on Russian social media show drones hitting a high-rise glass building. No casualties have been reported as a result of the attack.
In his statements, Putin addressed the local leader of Tatarstan, the region where Kazan is located, during a virtual ceremony marking the opening of a road.
The attack in Kazan is the latest in a series of increasingly frequent bombings in this nearly three-year-old conflict. Ukraine has not commented on the attack.
Putin had previously threatened to strike the center of Kyiv with a hypersonic ballistic missile in response to Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory.
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the recent Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities were retaliation for Ukraine’s use of Western-supplied missiles to target Russian territory.
International
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
At least nine people were killed on Sunday after a small aircraft crashed in a commercial area of the tourist city of Gramado, in the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, authorities confirmed.
“There are nine confirmed deaths according to Civil Defense services, and there are no survivors from the plane,” said Cléber dos Santos Lima, director of the Interior Police Department of the Civil Police of the state, in a statement to AFP.
Authorities have not yet confirmed the exact number of passengers and crew aboard the aircraft, a turbo-prop Piper Cheyenne 400. However, Civil Defense had previously stated that “preliminarily, the plane was carrying ten people.”
The plane crashed on Sunday morning “into the chimney of a building, then onto the second floor of a house, and finally fell onto a furniture store,” according to a statement from the Rio Grande do Sul Public Security Secretariat.
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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