Mexico, Chile to start talks on strategic partnership agreement
Mexico and Chile will start bilateral talks aimed at reaching an agreement on strategic partnership, Mexican President Vicente Fox and his visiting Chilean counterpart Ricardo Lagos said here Wednesday in a joint statement.

An agreement on strategic partnership will further promote extensive and all-round cooperation between the two countries, the statement said.

Signing the pact will systematize the political agreements, economic ties, cultural exchanges and cooperation between the two sides, the statement added.

Mexico and Chile have not set the date for signing the agreement so far. However, Chilean official media said that the agreement could be signed in November when Fox visits Chile to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC) or in 2005.

Also in their talks on Wednesday, the two presidents proposed to set up an annual governmental fund to push on bilateral cooperation programs.

Colombian guerrillas release eight kidnapped people
Colombia's rebel National Liberation Army (ELN) released eight people out of 16 abducted on Tuesday in San Jacinto del Cauca city, in the northern department of Bolivar, Colombian authorities said Wednesday.

The ELN guerrillas kidnapped the 16 aboard a boat along a river in the area.

San Vicente del Cauca Mayor Jairo Hernandez said most of those captured are peasants.

Hernandez demanded the Red Cross and the Ombudsman's office mediate for the release of the hostages.

The ELN is Colombia's second largest guerrilla group with 4,500 combatants, after the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

Colombia has been plagued with a four-decade civil war, in which leftist rebels, far-right paramilitary and government troops fight each other, killing 3,500 people every year.

About 2,000 people, including 22 foreigners, were kidnapped in Colombia last year.
 

Canada to provide more aid to Caribbean countries
The Canadian government announce Wednesday it will provide an additional aid of 1 million US dollars to the Caribbean countries affected by recent tropical storms.

An official press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of International Cooperation said the aid will be used to help the people of Grenada, Jamaica, Cuba, and other affected countries.

Canada's contribution will be delivered through the International Federation of Red Cross and Crescent Societies, the Pan American Health Organization, and CARE Canada. All organizations are working on the ground in the Caribbean and have established distribution systems, the press release said.

A stream of storms have hit the Caribbean over the past three weeks. Hurricane Ivan was blamed for the death of 70 people and the ensuing Tropical Storm Jeanne has left 1,000 people dead in Haiti.
 

Two Mexican drug kingpins sentenced to long prison term
Two Mexican drug kingpins have been sentenced to decades of years in prison, Mexican authorities said Wednesday.

Jose de Jesus Amezcua was sentenced to 53 years and nine months in prison and was ordered to pay a fine of about 8,000 US dollars for trafficking in ephedrine, the Mexican Attorney General's office said in a communique.

Adan Amezcua, Jose de Jesus' younger brother, was sentenced to 22 years and nine months in prison and ordered to pay a fine of 6,500 dollars for money laundering and organized crime charges.

The communique said the Amezcuas led a cartel that illegally imported ephedrine from Europe, India and Pakistan through the Mexican ports on the Pacific and Gulf coasts and used it to manufacture stimulant methamphetamine in western Mexico.

The two brothers were arrested in 1997 and 1998 respectively during anti-drug operations by the Mexican military police.