International

Mexico expects its workforce to recover by August

Mexico’s President Andres Lopez Obrador expects the nation’s job losses, caused by the Coronavirus pandemic, to stop next month, and recovery could begin in August.

According to preliminary data presented in a video on his social networks, in June 70,000 jobs were lost in Mexico. This figure shows a clear reduction compared to the more than half a million jobs lost in April.

In Mexico, about one million formal jobs have been lost since the beginning of the isolation measures in March, while the number of informal jobs is not yet clear. According to the president, 555,000 jobs were lost in April and 345,000 in May.

Central America

U.S. and Panama hold joint jungle exercises to strengthen security ties

U.S. and Panamanian security forces carried out joint exercises in Panama’s jungle on Wednesday, focusing on the exchange of specialized knowledge as part of renewed bilateral cooperation in security and defense, according to official statements.

Joint operations between the two nations—Panama, which has had no standing army since 1990, and the United States—have been frequent since the 1989 U.S. invasion. The latest drills come after both countries renewed their security cooperation last April through a memorandum of understanding, which initially sparked some controversy in Panama due to provisions allowing greater temporary and rotational U.S. military presence.

The exercises also coincide with an unprecedented U.S. military deployment in the Caribbean, part of Washington’s expanded anti-narcotics campaign, which it links to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s government—currently the target of a $50 million U.S. reward offer.

“We are simply focused on creating mutual understanding and shared experiences that can be beneficial for both countries, Panama and the United States,” said U.S. Colonel Ada Cotton during a press briefing.

The U.S. contingent, composed of Marines and an Army officer, participated at the invitation of the Panamanian government, which, according to Cotton, “has clearly defined what we can and cannot do” during the training exercises.

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International

Colombia conducts nationwide emergency drill focused on hidroituango dam

Colombians took part on Wednesday in the National Emergency Response Drill, an exercise aimed at enhancing citizens’ ability to react to risk situations and promoting a culture of prevention.

According to the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD), the drill was conducted throughout the country.

This year’s main focus was Hidroituango, Colombia’s largest hydroelectric power plant, located in a mountainous canyon in the municipality of Ituango, in the northwestern department of Antioquia.

The head of the UNGRD, Carlos Carrillo, oversaw the exercise at Hidroituango, which is powered by the Cauca River, the country’s second most important waterway after the Magdalena.

“We simulated a rise in the Cauca River’s water level,” Carrillo explained, noting that evacuation sirens sounded at 7:30 a.m. local time (12:30 GMT) and that five municipalities upstream and five downstreamtook part in the drill.

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Personnel operating the hydroelectric plant’s machinery also evacuated their work areas as part of the exercise.

Carrillo emphasized that the data collected during the simulation will be crucial to assess and strengthen the response capabilities of local governments and communities.

International

Uruguay’s Orsi and Tony Blair discuss AI cooperation and child poverty policies

Uruguayan President Yamandú Orsi met on Wednesday with former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair to discuss ways in which the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change could collaborate with Uruguay following a recently signed cooperation agreement.

Foreign Minister Mario Lubetkin told reporters that the meeting focused on how the Institute could support government policies aimed at reducing child poverty, as well as the application of artificial intelligence (AI) and technology in key sectors of the Uruguayan economy, such as agriculture and livestock.

The meeting, held at the Executive Tower in Montevideo, lasted about 45 minutes. Following the discussions, Blair departed for Buenos Aires.

Orsi and Blair also exchanged views on current global affairs, although Lubetkin clarified that no specific international issue was discussed in depth.

Blair, who served as UK Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007, was recently proposed by U.S. President Donald Trumpto help oversee a transitional government in Gaza, as part of a 20-point peace plan aimed at ending the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

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The U.S. plan envisions the creation of a technocratic and non-political Palestinian committee to temporarily govern the Gaza Strip under the supervision of a new international body called the “Peace Council,” which would be chaired by Trump.