LatinNews Daily - 22 February 2019

On 21 February, General Hugo ‘Pollo’ Carvajal, Venezuela’s former head of military counterintelligence (2004-2011) and current national deputy for the ruling Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela (PSUV), publicly denounced Nicolás Maduro for usurping the presidency and recognised the opposition leader, Juan Guaidó, as the country’s legitimate interim president.... Read More

* Ecuador’s transport & public works ministry (MTOP) has announced that it will invest US$345m in 2019 in improving the country’s port system.... Read More

On 21 February, Brazil’s presidential spokesperson Otávio do Rêgo Barros said that the government saw no risk of friction with Venezuela, following the country’s de facto president Nicolás Maduro’s decision to close the border, and that Brazil is focusing on delivering humanitarian aid.... Read More

* Brazilian mining giant Vale has reached a preliminary agreement with the local authorities to anticipate emergency payments to the people affected by the dam failure at the Corrego de Feijão mine in Brumadinho, Minas Gerais state, on 25 January.... Read More

On 21 February, Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega announced that negotiations will begin between the Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional (FSLN) government and business leaders on 27 February.... Read More

* Guatemala’s economy minister Acisclo Valladares has told reporters that the country’s economy grew 3.1% in 2018.... Read More

On 21 February, Mexico’s federal senate unanimously voted in favour of the creation of a national guard, part of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s national security plan to tackle violence across the country.... Read More

* Board members of Mexico’s central bank (Banxico) have expressed concerns regarding the state-owned oil company Pemex’s potential risks to the Mexican economy.... Read More

On 21 February, President Sebastián Piñera rejected criticism from the opposition that he had politicised Chilean foreign policy by electing to visit the Colombian border city of Cúcuta in person to oversee the stockpiling of humanitarian aid destined for Venezuela.... Read More

* Argentina’s national statistics institute (Indec) has issued a new report which shows that the country’s exports reached US$4.59bn in January, down 4.7% on January 2018, while imports reached US$4.21bn (down 26.5% on January 2018).... Read More