Americas press review

In the spotlight: US President Joe Biden's visit to Ukraine

US President Joe Biden alongside his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky on February 20, 2023 in kyiv.

© AP/Evan Vucci

Text by: Christophe Paget Follow

4 mins

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This surprise visit to Kiev is “ 

spectacular

 ”, judges the

Washington Post

, “ 

and high risk

 ”, while

“the alarm sirens sounded while Joe Biden roamed the streets

 ”.

A key moment for his presidency

 ", believes

Politico 

: "

 I thought it was crucial that there was no doubt, absolutely no doubt, about American support for Ukraine in this war

 ", insisted Joe Biden, one year after Russia invaded Ukraine.

The visit will have lasted a few hours, during which, underlines the 

New York Times

, the president announced 500 million dollars of additional military aid, during a joint conference with the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, conference during which Joe Biden insisted , writes the newspaper: " 

Ukraine has conquered a part of my heart

 ". 

New Canadian tanks in Haiti

Three new armored vehicles purchased by Haiti arrived in Port-au-Prince yesterday.

Armored vehicles " 

made in Canada, ordered and country by the Haitian government since June 2022 

", writes

Le Nouvelliste

, three vehicles "

 resistant to mines and protected against ambushes 

", specifies

Gazette Haïti

, taking up in title the remarks made on Twitter by the Ambassador of Canada to Haiti.

Vehicles purchased from a Canadian firm.

But that only makes 8 delivered out of the 18 ordered, notes the newspaper, while, according to a source in Le

Nouvelliste

, " 

the supplier had undertaken to deliver the order in less than 21 days 

" after the payment of the advance of 12 million US dollars, "

 but after the disbursement, it mentioned logistical problems, particularly in terms of air transport

 ".

In fact, it is the Royal Canadian Air Force that has taken charge of the three armored deliveries that have taken place so far.

At the same time, the Canadian Ambassador to Haiti, Sébastien Carrière, was interviewed on the Canadian program

Les Coulisses du Pouvoir.

Gazette Haiti

echoes this.

The Ambassador spoke of " 

significant military deployment

 " to describe these shipments of armored vehicles, surveillance operations and Royal Navy ships that are to be sent to, among other things, " 

disturb the activities of gangs who use sea ​​to transport hostages and drugs

 ".

In Brazil, torrential rains kill 36 people 

In southern Brazil, record rainfall kills 36, including 35 in the city of San Sebastian.

Last night, 228 people were homeless and 338 homeless, writes

Estadão de São Paulo 

: “ 

The rain flooded houses, blocked roads and caused landslides

 ”.

The front page of

O Globo

seems taken by schizophrenia, between the photos of the always extraordinary and colorful Brazilian carnival, which has just started, and that of the disaster which strikes the north coast of São Paulo – the newspaper reproduces the photo of a fault which , in front of a house, engulfed palm trees and vehicles.

The inhabitants of several neighborhoods of San Sebastian located on the north coast of São Paulo are still isolated and, according to the mayor, 'many people are still buried'", writes O

 Globo

who

interviewed him: for Felipe Augusto, he it is “ 

the greatest tragedy in the history of the region

 ”: “ 

100% of the city was affected, between 40 and 50 houses disappeared in the district of Vila do Sahy 

”, the most affected.

Correio Braziliense

specifies that President Lula will go to the region this Monday to accompany the rescue operations.

In Colombia, the ELN "sabotages the negotiations" according to the president

In Colombia, President Petro accuses the ELN guerrillas of “ 

sabotage the negotiations

 ”.

A soldier was kidnapped last Tuesday in the municipality of Arauquita, a kidnapping confirmed yesterday, writes

El Espectador

, " 

while the government and the ELN are moving towards a peace dialogue that resumed last week in Mexico

 ".

And so, writes 

El Tiempo

, that one of the main objectives is to reach a bilateral ceasefire.

In reaction to this kidnapping, the president therefore had " 

very firm words

 ", writes

El Tiempo

, which reproduces them: " 

these are facts which sabotage any possibility of peace

 ".

The army command, for its part, affirms that a " 

series of operations coordinated with the police have been put forward to free the non-commissioned officer

 ", writes

Semana

.

Gustavo Petro

persona non grata

in Peru

The Peruvian Congress decided this Friday to declare the Colombian president

persona non grata

in the country, recalls

El Comercio

.

In the spotlight: the comments of the Colombian president on the Peruvian police – the country is in the midst of a political and social crisis: “ 

In Peru, they march like the Nazis against their own people, breaking the American Convention on Human Rights

 ” .

Result: Gustavo Petro is

persona non grata

.

This Sunday, the Colombian chancellery reacted, explaining that it took good note of this decision, and considered it as " 

an act of a political nature

 " which " 

does not affect the historical relationship

 " between the two countries.

But for

El Espectador

, " 

the president's political statements, beyond being a shameful interference, have caused a spiral of tension and according to some analysts are blocking any attempt to create a united South America

 ".

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