LATAM POLITICS TODAY -U.S. to propose new U.N. sanctions on Haiti targets

The latest in Latin American politics today:

U.S. to offer Haiti targets for new U.N. sanctions UNITED NATIONS - The United States said it will propose further targets in Haiti for U.N. sanctions, a move broadly backed by China, as the country battles cholera and severe food shortages compounded by widespread violence from criminal gangs.

The 15-member U.N. Security Council agreed last October to impose an asset freeze, travel ban and arms embargo on anyone who threatens the peace or stability of Haiti, naming the country's most powerful gangster as its first target. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has also proposed that "a rapid action force" be sent to Haiti to help police combat gangs - a move also requested by Haiti's government, which has yet to materialize.

Guatemala to require visa for Dominicans migrants GUATEMALA CITY - Guatemala's migration institute announced it will require visas for visitors from the Dominican Republic starting next month, citing increased numbers of Dominicans arriving in Guatemala en route to the United States.

An institute spokesperson said the number of Dominicans who entered Guatemala "in an irregular manner with the aim of reaching the United States" increased from 104 in 2019 to 1,393 in 2022. The category B visa, which needs to be acquired at Guatemala's consulates, will grant Dominicans a stay of 90 days in Guatemala. In September 2021, Guatemala announced a similar visa requirement for Ecuadorans.

Venezuela's Congress takes step toward regulating NGOs CARACAS - Venezuela's National Assembly passed a first reading of a bill to regulate and inspect non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the country, which has caused uproar among activists.

If the bill passes into law after a second reading - promised to come quickly - advocacy groups fear it will silence Venezuela's NGOs and stop them from carrying out their work with new threats and intimidation. If it is approved NGOs will have to declare their finances, identify their donors and relationship to donations, and will be banned from "carrying out political activities, promoting or allowing actions that threaten national stability and the institutions of the republic," according to the text.

Trinidad to process Venezuelan gas, send supply to Caribbean PORT OF SPAIN - Trinidad and Tobago expects to gain access to 350 million cubic feet per day of gas from a Venezuelan offshore field following a U.S. license allowing the Caribbean nation to do business with state-run PDVSA, Prime Minister Keith Rowley said.

Trinidad applied for a U.S. license to participate in Venezuela's energy industry in mid-2022, which was granted on Tuesday following negotiations with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris. Brazil official: indigenous region like 'concentration camp'

BRASILIA - Brazil's military should evict illegal gold miners who have caused malnutrition and starvation in a region of the Yanomami reservation near the Venezuelan border, Indigenous Health Secretary Weibe Tapeba said. "It looks like a concentration camp," Tapeba, a doctor appointed to the position by Brazil's new government, said in a radio interview.

Tapeba said 700 members of the community were going hungry and healthcare is non-existent due to presence of well-armed gold miners that scared away medical workers from the health post and block people from bringing in supplies of medicine and food. Brazil-Argentina common currency 'impossible' right now

SAO PAULO - A common currency between Brazil and Argentina would be "impossible" to create if Argentina and other countries do not reach greater economic stability, the head of Brazilian steel distributors association INDA said on Tuesday. Carlos Jorge Loureiro was one of the first business leaders to comment on the idea of a common currency after Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Argentine President Alberto Fernandez floated it on Monday in Buenos Aires. (Compiled by Steven Grattan and Sarah Morland; Editing by Paul Simao)

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