International

Boric announces regiver of university debt and proposes a new financing system

The President of Chile, Gabriel Boric, announced his promised bill to forgive part of the debt that more than 1.2 million university students contracted in special credits to pay for their studies, while presenting a new public financing system.

“Most of those who are listening to these words today know someone who is in debt today for having studied in higher education with the State-Endorsed Credit (…) Today the CAE is a problem for all of Chile,” Boric said on national television.

Created in 2005 during the government of the socialist Ricardo Lagos (2000-2006), the CAE allowed thousands of young people with limited resources to access universities, but “over time it became a burden for students and their families,” the president added.

Despite what was promised in the campaign, the pardon will not be universal, but partial, and will be made “based on criteria of justice and merit,” and it will be taken into account if the person ended his career or if he has the debt up to date, Boric explained.

“Thus, we will support debtors with fewer resources, we will recognize those who have responsibly paid their dues and we will encourage the regularization of those who still owe payments,” he said.

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The legislative initiative, which will be presented this Tuesday in Parliament – where the Government does not have a majority – replaces the CAE with the so-called Public Financing for Higher Education (FES), an instrument with which beneficiary students do not disburse resources or go into debt, but pay their careers with a kind of progressive tax when they join the labor market, of no more than 8% of their monthly salary.

The FES, Boric said, “will involve a significantly lower fiscal expenditure than the State currently disburses for CAE,” which to date amounts to 9 billion dollars.

“Banks will not participate in this new financing instrument. With the FES, there will be no room for speculation, abuse, or profit, but a fair reward for the training received,” he concluded.

Boric, 38, forged his political career in the student mobilizations of 2011 in favor of gratuitousness and against the CAE.

The initial interest of the CAE was 6%, but after the mobilizations the rate was reduced to 2% during the government of the center-right Sebastián Piñera (2000-2014).

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Even so, those who graduate usually earn low incomes and pay credit to banks for years.

International

Florida judge sets 2027 trial in Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against BBC

A federal judge in Florida has scheduled February 2027 for the trial in the lawsuit filed by U.S. President Donald Trump against the BBC, in which he is seeking $10 billion in damages for defamation.

Trump accuses the British broadcaster of airing a misleading edit of a speech he delivered on January 6, 2021, which, he says, made it appear that he explicitly urged his supporters to attack the U.S. Capitol in Washington.

The president filed the suit in December in federal court in Florida, alleging defamation and violations of a law governing business practices when the program was broadcast ahead of the 2024 election.

Trump is seeking $5 billion in damages for each of the two claims.

Lawyers for the BBC unsuccessfully asked the court to dismiss the case, arguing that Trump had not suffered a “legally recognizable harm,” since the investigative program Panorama, which included the edited footage, aired outside the United States.

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International

Head-of-state diplomacy key to guiding China–U.S. ties, Beijing says

Head-of-state diplomacy plays an irreplaceable strategic guiding role in China–United States relations, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Thursday during a regular press briefing, when asked about high-level exchanges between the two sides.

Lin added that in a recent phone call, U.S. President Donald Trump once again expressed his intention to visit China in April, while Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated his invitation.

Both sides remain in communication regarding the matter, the spokesperson said.

Lin noted that the essence of China–U.S. economic and trade ties lies in mutual benefit and win-win outcomes.

“Both parties should work together to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, injecting greater certainty and stability into China–U.S. economic and trade cooperation, as well as into the global economy,” he said.

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International

Trump administration to end special immigration operation in Minnesota

The administration of Donald Trump is bringing to a close its special operation targeting illegal immigration in the northern state of Minnesota, border czar Tom Homan announced Thursday, following weeks of unrest and the fatal shootings of two activists by federal agents.

Thousands of federal officers had been deployed to Minnesota in December to carry out large-scale raids against undocumented immigrants.

The operations triggered strong reactions from residents and advocacy groups, leading to daily confrontations and the deaths of two people who were shot by federal agents.

“I proposed, and President Trump agreed, that this special operation should end in Minnesota,” Homan said during a press conference in the state capital, Minneapolis.

“A significant drawdown began this week and will continue into next week,” he added.

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Homan indicated that similar enforcement efforts could be launched in other cities.

“Next week we will redeploy the agents currently here back to their home stations or to other parts of the country where they are needed. But we will continue to enforce immigration laws,” he said.