Talks between Presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil and Santiago Peña of Paraguay reached nowhere Monday in Brasilia as both leaders failed to reach an agreement over the Itaipú dam electricity fares. However, dialogue will continue.
Paraguayan President Santiago Peña confirmed in an international interview with CNN that he was inspired by his El Salvador colleague Nayib Bukele when launching Operation Veneratio this week, a move to dismantle virtual ownership by the notorious Rotela Clan drug gang of the Tacumbú Penitentiary in Asunción.
One law enforcement officer and 11 inmates were killed Monday during the so-called Operation Veneratio at Asunción's Tacumbú Prison through which the administration of President Santiago Peña put an end to unthinkable privileges granted to incarcerated drug lord Armando Javier Rotela and his gang, which virtually ran the place.
“There is no Mercosur where only some people do well,” said Paraguayan President Santiago Peña on taking up his new role within the bloc, which in his view is bound for “great achievements.” Peña underlined that, globally, Mercosur faced four challenges: access to water, food security, energy sufficiency, and resilience in logistics chains.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez held a telephone conversation this week with Paraguayan President Santiago Peña during which he insisted on his country's commitment to finalizing the trade deal between the European Union and Mercosur while he held the rotating presidency of the northern alliance. The deal would unite 800 million people and represent a quarter of the world's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). If things go on as projected, Mercosur would obtain duty-free access for 93% of its exports to the EU, with a 10-year deadline to achieve this goal.
President Santiago Peña met on Tuesday with members of the Paraguayan community in Italy to discuss the situation of the South American expatriates. During the meeting, Peña stressed the importance of his country projecting an image of solid and transparent institutions that would lead to economic growth.
Paraguayan President Santiago Peña and Argentina's President-elect Javier Milei held a telephone conversation Monday during which they discussed bilateral issues. The Libertarian economist extended an invitation to Peña to attend his inauguration on Dec. 10 in Buenos Aires, which was accepted.
Paraguay and Venezuela agreed on Wednesday to resume diplomatic ties cut under former Paraguayan President Mario Abdo Benítez in January 2019. At that time, the then-president of Venezuela's National Assembly, Juan Guaidó, proclaimed himself president of a government that ended up in exile despite the backing of the international community and eventually vanished like a soap bubble.
The United States has reopened its doors to Paraguayan beef after 25 years, President Santiago Peña announced Thursday together with US Undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and Environment José W. Fernández and US Ambassador Marc Ostfield, it was reported in Asunción.
Paraguayan President Santiago Peña spoke Tuesday in favor of free trade and environmental protection during his appearance before the Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLAC) at its Santiago (Chile) headquarters.