Chile rejects "shared sovereignty" with Bolivia
Chile's acting Foreign Minister Alberto Van Klaveren on Thursday rejected the option to give Bolivia access to the Pacific Ocean with "shared sovereignty," saying the proposal lacks bases.

"We have not talked about that and it is not an issue being discussed," Klaveren said when asked about the recent statements made by Peru's Foreign Minister Jose Antonio Garcia Belaunde.

Belaunde said that Bolivia's option of obtaining sovereign ocean access through Chilean territory that belonged to Peru before the 1879-1884 Pacific war could be "welcome" as long as Peru's rights in the region are respected.

Belaunde also said the "shared sovereignty" proposal was "made by Chile to Bolivia in 1976."

"These issues must only be discussed through diplomatic routes" and Chile cannot give voice to "speculations," Kleveren said.

Chile and Bolivia broke off diplomatic relations in 1978, following the breakdown of negotiations on access to the Pacific Ocean. Bolivia wants Chile to restore the territories it lost in the Pacific war that left the country without any coastline.