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LATIN AMERICA |
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Morales Speaks of Closer Bolivia-U.S.
Relations
LA PAZ – Bolivian President Evo Morales
spoke Saturday of closer relations between
the United States and his country, and said
that a new accord to re-establish diplomatic
ties could be signed in November.
“Our foreign minister keeps me permanently
informed. At last they accepted the
conditions (of the accord) with
observations; there will still have to be
negotiations,” Morales said, referring to
the work of the commissions of both
countries to try and normalize the
deteriorated relations after the expulsion
of their respective ambassadors.
The Bolivian president said that the
requirements of his government to reach this
new accord are that there must be a
“government-to-government cooperation” and
that “United States diplomats must not be
political agents.”
In that sense, Morales said that last
Monday, the day of his 50th birthday, he
received a call from U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton, who told him that “there
are going to be some surprises in these
negotiations of our technicians.”
“I hope we can reach an agreement, I want to
express my thanks if there is willingness,
but the framework of renewed diplomatic
relations with the U.S. will occur
fundamentally if there is
government-to-government cooperation, and if
there are embassies that do their diplomatic
work and keep out of politics,” he said.
In that sense, Morales said that the ex-U.S.
ambassador in La Paz who has been appointed
the new assistant secretary of state for
intelligence and research in Washington,
Philip Goldberg, was an “intelligence agent
who sought to divide Bolivia.”
He also said he wasn’t sorry about expelling
him from the country because “beyond any
socio-economic problems we Bolivians have,
we’re decent people.”
Goldberg, who was booted out of Bolivia in
September of 2008 accused by President
Morales of conspiring against him, was named
several days ago the new assistant secretary
of state for intelligence and research.
“Now we see that Goldberg was not a diplomat
but an intelligence agent that sought to
divide Bolivia, and now President Obama has
given him intelligence position,” he said.
The indigenous leader said that negotiations
between the two delegations continue and
added that an outline agreement could be
signed in November, when a U.S. delegation
plans to visit La Paz.
“It’s not certain, but maybe the outline
agreement for renewed diplomatic relations
can be signed in November, and we, of
course, want to have diplomatic relations
with the whole world for purposes of fair
trade, investment and cooperation,” he said.
Morales appreciated the improved relations
between the two delegations and the U.S.
commission’s change in some of its demands.
“During the first visits of U.S. diplomats,
they said that we couldn’t have relations
with (Hugo) Chavez, with Cuba, with Iran.
But in the latest visits they’ve accept that
we have the right to have relations with the
whole world. We have begun, I don’t know,
perhaps to educate or change them,” he said.
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