Chile ex-president denies Argentina bribes claim

Chile's ex-president Sebastian Pinera on Tuesday denied accusations that he paid bribes to Argentine officials to help his former airline business.

Argentine prosecutors are investigating claims that a company run by Pinera paid a million dollars to the country's former transportation minister in 2006, according to court documents.

The payment was allegedly aimed at securing the minister's approval to launch operations in Argentina by Chilean airline LAN. Pinera was its director and main shareholder.

"This accusation is either very irresponsible or very malicious," Pinera told a news conference on Tuesday.

Pinera later served as president of Chile from 2010 to 2014.

The case was lodged against him last week, brought by plaintiffs including former LAN directors and Argentine authorities.

LAN merged last year with Brazilian carrier TAM to form LATAM, the region's biggest airline.

Source: AFP