Argentine-Chile summit over the Andes

The presidents of Argentina and Chile -- Carlos Menem and Eduardo Frei -- are meeting in the Argentinian town of San Juan to sign an agreement on mining rights.

They'll then fly over the Andes for a second signing ceremony in the Chilean town of Antofagasta.

Correspondents say the agreement is designed to boost the region's mineral exports by giving companies in Argentina access to the Pacific.

But the Chilean foreign minister, Jose Miguel Insulza, said his country's parliament would be unlikely to ratify the deal until a territorial dispute over the southern ice fields is resolved.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service