LATAM POLITICS TODAY-Colombia's Petro withdraws political reform, marking defeat

Bolivian leader calls for regional lithium policy LA PAZ - Bolivian President Luis Arce said he would be willing to jointly design a lithium policy with other Latin American countries to benefit their economies, echoing a similar proposal from his Mexican counterpart.

The latest in Latin American politics today: Colombia's Petro withdraws reform in legislative defeat

BOGOTA - The Colombian government decided to remove its political reform proposal from Congress as it has not met demands from President Gustavo Petro, marking the first political defeat for the leftists leader. The reform process was aimed at promoting public financing for campaigns, as well as gender parity among candidates for legislative elections.

"I think that in the political reform there is no progressive issue left," Petro said in his Twitter account. Colombia's Interior Minister Alfonso Prada said the government will seek a national agreement to resubmit the bill in order to make politics "more transparent" and prevent electoral corruption.

Brazil's Lula: Attack against ex-minister is 'his own plot' BRASILIA - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said a plan to attack former Justice Minister Sergio Moro was part of Moro's own hack, accusing him of lying.

Brazil's federal police launched on Wednesday an operation to dismantle a criminal group that was accused of planning deadly attacks against public servants, including Moro and his family. Moro is known for leading a sprawling anti-corruption investigation known as Lava Jato as well as authorizing the arrest of Lula in 2018 on graft charges.

The former minister and current senator rejected the accusation on Wednesday, demanding Lula retract it. Mexican president says activist's phone call was recorded

MEXICO CITY - Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador confirmed for the first time that the government monitored the phone of a human rights activist, saying it was part of a probe into a suspected gang member. A report by non-profit groups this month accused Mexico of hacking the communications of prominent activist Raymundo Ramos in 2020, publishing documents that it said showed the military had access to messages Ramos sent to journalists.

Lopez Obrador has repeatedly denied allegations that his government has spied on activists, journalists and opponents, while saying it does intelligence work to fight crime. Bolivian leader calls for regional lithium policy

LA PAZ - Bolivian President Luis Arce said he would be willing to jointly design a lithium policy with other Latin American countries to benefit their economies, echoing a similar proposal from his Mexican counterpart. Arce called for unity and sovereignty in policies benefiting the region's economies, while also warning of U.S. meddling in the business. "We don't want our lithium to be in the Southern Command's crosshairs," he said.

His comments came a fortnight after U.S. Southern Command General Laura Richardson told a Congressional hearing China was exploiting the region's resources and had a "very advanced and very aggressive" game concerning South America's lithium resources, which account for more than half the estimated resources worldwide. (Compiled by Sarah Morland and Carolina Pulice; Editing by Richard Chang)