International

Highlighting the Citizen Revolution project in Ecuador

Photo: EFE

September 6 |

The vice presidential candidate of Ecuador for the opposition party Revolución Ciudadana (RC), Andrés Arauz, explained this Tuesday in an interview with the program En Clave Política of the teleSUR platform the political program defended by his organization.

Arauz began by explaining how they have “regained presence in the Amazon, in Galapagos, in the Central Highlands. We have assembly members in almost all the provinces of the country. We are the first political force in Ecuador”.

“We increased the number of absolute votes in the presidential election, also in the Assembly list. While in the presidential election we won in 14, in the National Assembly list, that is, the parliamentary option, we won in 19 of the 24”, he added.

“We also have nine prefectures, the most populated in Ecuador. People are with the option of the Citizen Revolution. There are improvements to be made in terms of communicating our proposal, refreshing it, especially for young people,” Arauz indicated.

20250501_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

Regarding his strategy for the second round of elections, to be held next October 15, the running mate of the presidential candidate for the CR, Luisa González, added: “We obviously have to improve our strategy, make our programmatic contents, proposals and government plan a little more visible”.

“We have full knowledge of each institution of the State, what we have to do to recover the economy of our country, security, welfare and that is why now we are going to deepen in the programmatic content in relation to public investment, productive credit, support programs for young people”, she said referring to her government plan.

Regarding the permanence of Guillermo Lasso in power until December, he said: “The country will be destroyed, but we have some very concrete proposals. We have ready the executive decrees to declare an emergency in four sectors, health, education, security and roads. We are going to generate an enormous public investment in our country and turn the resources towards development and generate opportunities in our country”.

The candidate assured regarding the economic policies he proposes: “We are ready to deploy the informatics power of the State and with political decision, to collect close to 2 billion dollars in the period of government that we will have to administer our country to be able to finance the urgencies and national development”.

20250501_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

International

U.S. Senate Rejects Budget, Bringing Government Closer to Shutdown Amid DHS Dispute

The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday against a budget proposal in a move aimed at pressuring changes at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), following the killing of two civilians during a deployment of immigration agents in Minneapolis.

All Senate Democrats and seven Republican lawmakers voted against the bill, which requires 60 votes to advance, pushing the country closer to a partial government shutdown that would cut funding for several agencies, including the Pentagon and the Department of Health.

The rejection came as Senate leaders and the White House continue negotiations on a separate funding package for DHS that would allow reforms to the agency. Proposed measures include banning Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from wearing face coverings and requiring them to use body-worn cameras during operations.

The vote took place just hours after President Donald Trump said he was “close” to reaching an agreement with Democrats and did not believe the federal government would face another shutdown, following last year’s record stoppage.

“I don’t think the Democrats want a shutdown either, so we’ll work in a bipartisan way to avoid it. Hopefully, there will be no government shutdown. We’re working on that right now,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House.

20250501_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

International

Trump Says Putin Agreed to One-Week Halt in Attacks on Ukraine Amid Extreme Cold

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he secured a commitment from Russian President Vladimir Putinto halt attacks against Ukraine for one week, citing extreme weather conditions affecting the region.

“Because of the extreme cold (…) I personally asked Putin not to attack Kyiv or other cities and towns for a week. And he agreed. He was very pleasant,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting broadcast by the White House.

Trump acknowledged that several advisers had questioned the decision to make the call.
“A lot of people told me not to waste the call because they wouldn’t agree. And he accepted. And we’re very happy they did, because they don’t need missiles hitting their towns and cities,” the president said.

According to Trump, Ukrainian authorities reacted with surprise to the announcement but welcomed the possibility of a temporary ceasefire.
“It’s extraordinarily cold, record cold (…) They say they’ve never experienced cold like this,” he added.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later commented on the announcement, expressing hope that the agreement would be honored.

20250501_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

International

Storm Kristin Kills Five in Portugal, Leaves Nearly 500,000 Without Power

Storm Kristin, which battered Portugal with heavy rain and strong winds early Wednesday, has left at least five people dead, while nearly half a million residents remained without electricity as of Thursday, according to updated figures from authorities.

The revised death toll was confirmed to AFP by a spokesperson for the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANPEC). On Wednesday, the agency had reported four fatalities.

Meanwhile, E-Redes, the country’s electricity distribution network operator, said that around 450,000 customers were still without power, particularly in central Portugal.

Emergency services responded to approximately 1,500 incidents between midnight and 8:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday, as the storm caused widespread disruptions.

The Portuguese government described Kristin as an “extreme weather event” that inflicted significant damage across several regions of the country. At the height of the storm, as many as 850,000 households and institutions lost electricity during the early hours of Wednesday.

20250501_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

Several municipalities ordered the closure of schools, many of which remained shut on Thursday due to ongoing adverse conditions.

Ricardo Costa, regional deputy commander of the Leiria Fire Brigade, said residents continue to seek assistance as rainfall persists.
“Even though the rain is not extremely intense, it is causing extensive damage to homes,” he noted.

In Figueira da Foz, a coastal city in central Portugal, strong winds toppled a giant Ferris wheel, underscoring the severity of the storm.