Ecuador is to default officially on billions of dollars of foreign debt it considers "illegitimate", says President Rafael Correa.
Mr Correa said he had given the order not to approve a debt interest payment due on Monday, describing the international lenders as "monsters".
The president said the some of Ecuador's $10bn debt was contracted illegally by a previous administration.
It is the first debt default by a country in Latin America since 2001.
At that time, Argentina failed to repay debt in the midst of its financial meltdown.
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7780984.stm
