International

Petro launches ‘Mission Cauca’ strategy to guarantee security in southwestern Colombia

The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, and the Minister of Defense, Iván Velázquez, presented this Friday ‘Mission Cauca’, a strategy that seeks to transform the region and guarantee security in this convulsive area of the southwest of the country.

The operation will focus on “strengthening military and police operations in the department in order to neutralize organized armed groups and organized criminal groups, as well as their illicit economies mainly associated with drug trafficking, illicit mineral extraction and extortion,” the Presidency said in a statement.

This initiative, which is part of the National Development Plan and will be carried out by the State, the communities, local authorities and the private sector, aims at a territorial transformation including economic, productive, cultural and social aspects to “guarantee full security and integral development in the region.”

The head of state ordered that the Military Forces be responsible for building roads, hospitals, schools, university headquarters and drinking water aqueducts in the conflict zones of the department (province).

He pointed out that the resources for these works will be provided by the General Budget of the Nation, while stressing that “the military take better care of the money than the politicians.”

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The director of the National Planning Department (DNP), Alexander López, pointed out during the presentation that the initiative “has a strictly social component, which is linked to guaranteeing the security and rights of the population,” and added that this mission is the articulation for the transformation of the department of Cauca.

For his part, Minister Velásquez stressed that the objective is to have an “effective” control of the territory in which citizen security can be promoted, in addition to fighting against illicit economies (narcotrafficking) by cutting their financing, not only with military confrontation.

The departments of Cauca and Valle del Cauca have been the scene for two months of terrorist actions of the Central General Staff (EMC) – dissidents of the extinct FARC guerrillas – against military and police facilities, which have left them dead and injured.

Just last week, the EMC, which is currently spart into two groups previously commanded by ‘Iván Mordisco’, intensified the number of violent actions in Cauca that began with four coordinated attacks that left a civilian and two policemen injured.

Likewise, Sigifredo Márquez, father of the Colombian vice president, Francia Márquez, was the subject of an attack on Sunday when he was traveling with a six-year-old nephew of the high official, between the towns of Timba, in Cauca, and the Robles hamlet, a rural area of Jamundí, in the interior of Colombia.

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International

Paraguay summons Brazilian ambassador over Itaipú espionage scandal

Paraguay summoned the Brazilian ambassador in Asunción on Tuesday to demand “explanations” and called its own representative in Brasília for consultations following Brazil’s acknowledgment of an espionage operation. The Brazilian government, led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, attributed the operation to the previous administration.

The surveillance effort aimed to uncover Paraguay’s position in now-suspended negotiations with Brazil regarding the pricing of electricity from the binational Itaipú hydroelectric plant, according to reports in the Brazilian press.

The Brazilian government “categorically denied any involvement in the intelligence operation,” stating in a Foreign Ministry communiqué on Monday that the espionage was carried out under former President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration (2019-2023).

“The operation was authorized by the previous government in June 2022 and was annulled by the interim director of the (state intelligence agency) ABIN on March 27, 2023, as soon as the current administration became aware of it,” Brazil’s government asserted.

Paraguay’s Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez announced that Brazilian Ambassador José Antonio Marcondes de Carvalho was summoned “to provide detailed explanations” regarding the operation. Additionally, Paraguay recalled its diplomatic representative in Brasília “to report on aspects related to the intelligence activity conducted by Brazil regarding Paraguay’s government affairs.”

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International

Elon Musk to step down as government advisor, per Trump insiders

President Donald Trump has informed his inner circle that Elon Musk will be stepping down from his role as a government advisor, according to a report by Politico today.

Citing three individuals close to Trump, Politico states that the president is pleased with Musk’s leadership at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where he has implemented significant budget cuts. However, both have agreed that it is time for Musk to return to his businesses and support Trump from a different position outside the government.

A senior administration official told Politico that Musk will likely maintain an informal advisory role and continue to be an occasional visitor to the White House. Another source warned that anyone thinking Musk will completely disappear from Trump’s circle is “deluding themselves.”

According to the sources, this transition is expected to coincide with the end of Musk’s tenure as a “special government employee,” a temporary status that exempts him from certain ethics and conflict-of-interest regulations. This 130-day period is set to expire in late May or early June.

International

Milei vows to make Argentina so strong that Falkland Islanders “choose” to join

Argentine President Javier Milei reaffirmed his country’s claim over the Falkland Islands (known as the Islas Malvinas in Argentina) and praised the role of the nation’s armed forces during a ceremony marking the “Veterans and Fallen Soldiers of the Malvinas War Day,” commemorating 43 years since the 1982 conflict with the United Kingdom.

Argentina continues to assert sovereignty over the islands, arguing that Britain unlawfully seized them in 1833.

“If sovereignty over the Malvinas is the issue, we have always made it clear that the most important vote is the one cast with one’s feet. We hope that one day, the Malvinas residents will choose to vote with their feet and join us,” Milei stated.

“That is why we aim to become a global power—so much so that they would prefer to be Argentine, making deterrence or persuasion unnecessary. This is why we have embarked on a path of liberation, working to make Argentina the freest country in the world and once again the nation with the highest GDP per capita on the planet,” he added.