Americas press review
In the spotlight: escape of former Ecuadorian minister Maria Duarte sentenced for corruption
Maria de los Angeles Duarte, on October 14, 2016, then Ecuadorian Minister of Urban Development and Housing, attends a press conference in Quito (Illustrative image).
© JUAN CEVALLOS / AFP
Text by: Grégory Genevrier Follow
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Former Ecuadorian minister Maria Duarte fled from the Argentine embassy, where she had been a refugee since August 2020. This was announced on Monday by the Ecuadorian chancellery.
As a result, "the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Luis Vayas, urgently summoned the Argentine Ambassador to Ecuador, Gabriel Fuks, to obtain more details on the situation", El Comercio
reports
.
La Hora
recalls that the former Minister of Transport under the government of Rafael Correa "was sentenced in 2020, along with 18 other people, by a criminal court of the National Court of Justice (CNJ), to eight years in prison for acts of aggravated corruption", but also that she is not the only one on the run.
“
Among the other former officials who held positions in the Correa administration and who are still at large is Ricardo Patiño.
He left the country in April 2019 and took refuge in Mexico
,” the daily adds.
El Mercurio
specifies that "
the police have activated the search and capture protocol
" to find Maria Duarte.
Gustavo Petro announces the start of new talks
In Colombia, President Gustavo Petro has announced that peace talks could begin with the main dissident faction of the former FARC guerrillas.
"This decision comes after the prosecutor, Francisco Barbosa, announced that he was suspending the arrest warrants against 19 dissidents," said
Caracol
.
However,
“apart from this announcement, we do not know who will be the government representatives in this new dialogue
” or “
where the negotiations will be held
”, notes
El Espectador
.
The daily notes that, following this decision, "
the dissidents of Iván Mordisco will benefit from political recognition
[...]
contrary to what happened with other armed groups such as the Clan del Golfo and the Autodefensas Conquistadores
”.
► To read also: Colombia: President Petro's plan to dismantle the cartels
After the bankruptcy of SVB, the time of responsibilities
In the United States, a few days after the fall of the Californian bank Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), the media are wondering who the culprits are.
The
Wall Street Journal
is interested in the figure of Greg Becker, the CEO of the SVB and his lieutenants.
"
They all but ignored the Federal Reserve's rate hike, betting on lower interest rates and focusing on a booming and crisis-ridden tech sector
," the paper noted.
Conclusion: “
the leaders showed an optimism closer to that of an entrepreneur than that of a bank boss
”.
For its part, the
New York Times
points the finger at former President Donald Trump who
"watered down the historic regulatory reform law that his predecessor enacted following the financial crisis
" of 2008. The daily also accuses the banks that had long been “
telling lawmakers and others that they were safe enough and not subject to federal oversight
.”
Politico
meanwhile underlines the complicated situation in which the Fed finds itself, which meets on March 21 and 22: "
if the Central Bank holds back on rate hikes, this could lead to inflation remaining high for longer
" but in the Otherwise, "
it risks causing more financial turbulence
".
► Also to listen: Will the Silicon Valley Bank crisis hinder the fight against inflation?
Joe Biden greenlights Project Willow
The American newspapers also draw up a first assessment of the decision of Joe Biden, who gave the green light on Monday to the Willow oil project in Alaska.
A rather grim record according to
Politico
, which claims that "
Biden is angering his allies and failing to appease his critics with his Alaska oil compromise
."
The outlet adds that "
criticism on the right and left will likely use it as an angle of attack leading up to election day
."
This reversal of Joe Biden "
is explained by a global energy crisis and intense pressure from lawmakers in Alaska
", estimates the
New York Times
.
Same story on the side of
Anchorage News
, which states that "
many native leaders, politicians and business groups in Alaska have exerted intense pressure to obtain approval of the file
".
► To read also: Joe Biden under pressure from NGOs about the largest American oil project
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