Turkish Airlines (TK, Istanbul Airport) is in talks with Uruguayan authorities who are keen on the Star Alliance member establishing a regional South American hub out of Montevideo Carrasco. Uruguay's El Diario newswire says the country's Minister of Transport, Enrique Pintado, and Deputy Minister of Tourism, Antonio Carámbula, are in Istanbul at the behest of their Turkish counterparts who paid a visit to the South American country earlier this year. The report claims that the Turkish carrier's Buenos Aires Ministro Pistarini and São Paulo Guarulhos services have encountered unspecified "difficulties" and as such, has now considered using Montevideo as an alternative. Turkish also intends to leverage Uruguay's proximity to the soccer World Cup 2014 due to be held in Brazil.