LATAM POLITICS TODAY-Leak of secretive Cuban reserves data stirs confusion, concern

Guatemala calls ambassador in Colombia back for consultations after Petro defends minister GUATEMALA CITY - Guatemala has called its ambassador in Colombia back for consultations, Guatemala's foreign ministry said in a statement on Tuesday, condemning what it called the abrupt decision by the Colombian government against Guatemala's justice system.

The latest in Latin American politics today:

Leak of secretive Cuban reserves data stirs confusion, concern HAVANA - Cuba's state-run media has created a stir among economists, diplomats and creditors by publishing an estimate of the Communist-run island's international reserves, elusive data long considered a "state secret" there.

Buried deep in a two-part, 2,000-word analysis of the economy earlier this month in Cubadebate, the country's top digital media platform, Cuba's former economy minister Jose Luis Rodriguez listed the country's international reserves as $11.528 billion in 2019 and estimated they had declined by $2.5 billion, or 22%, through 2021. Guatemala calls ambassador in Colombia back for consultations after Petro defends minister

GUATEMALA CITY - Guatemala has called its ambassador in Colombia back for consultations, Guatemala's foreign ministry said in a statement on Tuesday, condemning what it called the abrupt decision by the Colombian government against Guatemala's justice system. On Monday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro defended his defense minister, who led a UN anti-corruption unit in Guatemala and who is accused of illegal acts by the Central American country.

Davos 2023: Brazil's Haddad eyes two-phase tax reform in 2023 DAVOS - Brazil's Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said on Tuesday the country's economic agenda includes a tax reform in two phases this year, mentioning the integration of a broadly progressive South America as a growth vector for the region.

Speaking at a World Economic Forum panel in Davos, Switzerland, Haddad said the newly inaugurated government of leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva wants to vote on an income tax reform in the second half of 2023, after a consumption tax reform forecast for the first half of the year. (Compiled by Steven Grattan; Editing by Paul Simao)

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