Nearly two years after it first demanded that Yale University return thousands of artifacts from Machu Picchu excavated by Hiram Bingham in 1911, the Justice Ministry of Peru has approved plans to press ahead with the government's charges against the Ivy-league school. Bingham's discovery helped to drum up international interest in Peru and incited a steady stream of tourism to the site that has yet to let up.

Although they were promised a new era of engagement by President Bush back in 2000, many Latin American leaders are looking to the election of Barack Obama with the hope that this promise becomes a reality. As we all know, the Bush administration was unable to keep this promise to the regions leaders due to the attention and resources it has committed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.