International
“The Chilean government is more continuous than you think,” says its Foreign Minister Alberto van Klaveren
The Chilean Foreign Minister, Alberto van Klaveren, acknowledges in an interview with EFE that his Government, and especially President Gabriel Boric, have better approval outside than inside Chile and says that the progressive president leads a project with “much more continuity than is sometimes thought.”
For the 75-year-old diplomat, and a member of the most veteran and moderate wing of the Executive, Boric embodies a “new progressivism,” “with generational elements.” But it relies on “the management of previous progressive governments.”
“President Boric himself recognizes it. I am thinking about the relationship he has with former Presidents Bachelet and Lagos… There is much more continuity than is sometimes thought,” says Van Klaveren, who has been in office for a year.
Former ambassador and former Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, Van Klaveren leads the Foreign Ministry at a complex time for global geopolitics, but admits that he receives less criticism from the opposition and citizens than other portfolios because Chilean foreign policy is assumed as a “state question.”
“I am struck by the contrast between the external image, not only of the president, but of Chile and his Government, and the internal image,” he adds.
On the eve of the International Press Freedom Day, which this year Unesco commemorates in Chile with a major event, the chancellor affirms that he is concerned about global disinformation campaigns, “driven by very dark sectors, linked to organized crime and even governments.” Which, in addition, affect different countries, especially in electoral processes.
For the diplomat, governments must face this threat with “greater transparency,” “more communication” and “more pluralism in the media.”
Van Klaveren also warns of an increase in “radicalization” in America and Europe, which “does not come from the moderate right, which has its space and great experience in terms of government.” But of “the alternative right, which begins to exert pressure on the rest of the political spectrum and has a chain impact.”
In some countries of the region, Van Klaveren also observes “a certain tendency” to authoritarianism, a phenomenon that, from his point of view, is a consequence of the crime crisis that crosses the continent and that leads citizens to prefer to renounce certain freedoms in exchange for security.
Boric is one of the toughest leaders with the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, and the bilateral relationship has had several impasses.
The last, following the Aragua Train, the criminal gang born in a Venezuelan prison and whose tentacles have spread throughout the continent, and the murder in February of Venezuelan lieutenant Ronald Ojeda, asylyled in Chile.
“It is highly likely that this crime has been organized outside Chile (…) We would like to think that it has not (it has been orchestrated by the Venezuelan Government), but obviously all hypotheses are open and it will be the judicial investigation that will have to clarify it,” he says.
With regard to the upcoming July elections in Venezuela, Van Klaveren does not want to go in to assess the options of the opposition. But he assures that Chile is interested in “contributing to the development of an open and plural electoral process, with guarantees.”
On the irruption of the Ecuadorian police in the Mexican embassy, another matter that has convulsed the region, the chancellor is clear in defending international law and the inviolability of diplomatic missions. But, in turn, he celebrates that the dispute has gone to international courts.
“It confirms a trend in Latin America that distinguishes us from other regions of the world and that has to do with the principle of the peaceful solution of differences,” he says.
Boric also stands out for being a defender of the Palestinian cause and one of the great critics of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, where more than 34,400 Palestinians have already died.
“We hope that both the United States and countries in the area, such as Saudi Arabia, can promote an agreement between Israel and Hamas that will stop the death of so many innocent people and achieve a relative normalization of the area,” he emphasizes.
Despite the criticism, Chile has never considered the breakdown of relations with Israel, as Colombia has done. In addition, Van Klaveren rules out that his support for the Palestinian State may affect his relations with the United States, the largest Israeli ally.
“There is understanding for our position. Obviously there may be differences in appreciation of what is happening, but our relationships are totally normal,” he says.
International
U.S. and Mexico Reach Deal to Address Water Deficit Under 1944 Treaty
The United States and Mexico have reached an agreement to comply with current water obligations affecting U.S. farmers and ranchers and for Mexico to cover its water deficit to Texas under the 1944 Water Treaty, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a statement.
The department уточified that the agreement applies to both the current cycle and the water deficit from the previous cycle.
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump accused Mexico of failing to comply with the water-sharing treaty between the two countries, which requires the United States to deliver 1.85 billion cubic meters of water from the Colorado River, while Mexico must supply 432 million cubic meters from the Rio Grande.
Mexico is behind on its commitments. According to Washington, the country has accumulated a deficit of more than one billion cubic meters of water over the past five years.
“This violation is severely harming our beautiful crops and our livestock in Texas,” Trump wrote on Monday.
The Department of Agriculture said on Friday that Mexico had agreed to supply 250 million cubic meters of water starting next week and to work toward closing the shortfall.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, quoted in the statement, said Mexico delivered more water in a single year than it had over the previous four years combined.
Trump has said that if Mexico continues to fall short of its obligations, the United States reserves the right to impose 5% tariffs on imported Mexican products.
Mexico’s Deputy Foreign Minister for North America, Roberto Velasco, said that a severe drought in 2022 and 2023prevented the country from meeting its commitments.
International
Several people shot in attack on Brown University campus
Several people were shot on Saturday in an attack on the campus of Brown University, in the northeastern United States, local police reported.
“Shelter in place and avoid the area until further notice,” the Providence Police Department urged in a post on X. Brown University is located in Providence, the capital of the state of Rhode Island.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social that he had been briefed on the situation and that the FBI was on the scene.
At 5:52 p.m. local time (11:52 p.m. GMT), Brown University said the situation was still “ongoing” and instructed students to remain sheltered until further notice.
After initially stating that the suspect had been taken into custody, Trump later posted a second message clarifying that local police had walked back that information. “The suspect has NOT been apprehended,” the U.S. president said.
International
Colombia says it would not reject Maduro asylum request as regional tensions escalate
The Colombian government stated on Thursday that it would have no reason to reject a potential asylum request from Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro should he leave office, as regional tensions persist over the deployment of U.S. military forces in the Caribbean since August.
“In the current climate of tension, negotiations are necessary, and if the United States demands a transition or political change, that is something to be assessed. If such a transition results in him (Maduro) needing to live elsewhere or seek protection, Colombia would have no reason to deny it,” said Colombian Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio in an interview with Caracol Radio.
However, Villavicencio noted that it is unlikely Maduro would choose Colombia as a refuge. “I believe he would opt for someplace more distant and calmer,” she added.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro also commented on Venezuela’s situation on Wednesday, arguing that the country needs a “democratic revolution” rather than “inefficient repression.” His remarks followed the recent detention and passport cancellation of Cardinal Baltazar Porras at the Caracas airport.
“The Maduro government must understand that responding to external aggression requires more than military preparations; it requires a democratic revolution. A country is defended with more democracy, not more inefficient repression,” Petro wrote on X (formerly Twitter), in a rare public criticism of the Venezuelan leader.
Petro also called for a general amnesty for political opponents and reiterated his call for forming a broad transitional government to address Venezuela’s prolonged crisis.
Since September, U.S. military forces have destroyed more than 20 vessels allegedly carrying drugs in Caribbean and Pacific waters near Venezuela and Colombia, resulting in over 80 deaths.
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly warned that attacks “inside Venezuela” will begin “soon,” while Maduro has urged Venezuelans to prepare for what he describes as an impending external aggression.
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