Uh oh! Evo Morales now claims the US has a plot to kill him, according to his good friend Hugo Chavez.
Is Evo being set up for execution by the US?
I seriously doubt it.
He has been targeted for investigation by US agencies in the past. DEA tried for years -without success- to find evidence of a direct link between him and drug dealers. When you lead the union of coca growers, which supplies those drug dealers, you kind of bring that on yourself.
So, maybe Evo is suspicious of US intentions, from his past history. But as far as being directly targeted for death as President now, that is plain paranoia and/or political.
It does not do well for a modern Bolivian president to be saying these things. This just same days after he closed a speech saying "Death to the Yankees," and had Chavez spouting off next to him. The Venezuelan says all sorts of crazy things against the US, but Evo can hardly afford to do so. If anything, maybe Evo should stop listening to Chavez.
While relations with the US are tense, the US administration has been fairly measured in approaching Bolivia's new government. While Evo has been launching invective against the US, the response has been two paragraphs of Bush talking about the erosion of democracy in Venezuela and Bolivia. The contentious issue of eradication of coca fields, the biggest US concern in Bolivia, has been kept very low key.
This is just another example of Evo shooting himself (and Bolivia)in the foot. In 3 months, through actions and statements he has angered the leaders of critical nations like Brazil, Peru, and Spain. They do not trust him, since he has said one thing in private then done and said other things in public. Now, he is adding "erratic" (if not idiotic) to his reputation.
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