Free Republic

Domingo Tortorelli promised the Uruguayan people the earth: a milk fountain at every street corner, a working day of no longer than 15 minutes and a fuel-saving road from the capital Montevideo to Rivera, more than 300 miles away, that would slope downhill in both directions.

An Iranian 'diplomat' who was caught gathering intelligence on the Israeli embassy in Uruguay has fled that country. Ahmed Sabatgold, 32, a political consultant in the Iranian embassy in Montevideo, was suspected of being involved in placing an explosive device near the new Israeli embassy in early January, the Uruguayan El Observador newspaper reported Sunday. Haaretz reported on Friday that the Uruguayan government had expelled an Iranian diplomat on suspicion of involvement in the attempted bomb attack on the Israeli embassy. The publication caused a great deal of embarrassment in Montevideo, where the government had tried to keep the...

Thousands of protesters greeted Mr Bush's arrival US President George Bush has met his Uruguayan counterpart, Tabare Vazquez, as part of his five-nation Latin American tour to promote trade.Mr Bush arrived in Montevideo from Brazil - where he signed a deal to develop alternative fuel sources. Uruguay is keen to sign free trade deals with the US, even if it means leaving the Mercosur trade bloc. The tour attracted protests in Brazil and about 5,000 protesters gathered in Uruguay for Mr Bush's visit. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is conducting his own tour of the region and addressed 40,000 anti-Bush...