It looks like the US just failed to coup Bolivia for its lithium again
This is a sad day for the empire
The US appears to have failed to overthrow another leader in Bolivia. While I can’t say for certain this coup attempt has US fingerprints on it, when is the US not involved in a Latin American coup?
Here is what I do know: President Luis Arce met with Putin at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum recently to discuss their countries’ partnership. This move will no doubt have pissed off the US that has been desperate to obtain Bolivia’s lithium as cheaply as possible, like it has done so with Argentina’s.
Back in 2017, the US succeeded in driving the hugely popular Evo Morales out of power after manufacturing charges of election fraud which were later debunked by MIT and the Center for Economic and Policy Research.
Morales was driven into exile and a fascist US puppet called Jeanine Anez was installed in his place. The US declared this person no one wanted as the rightful leader of Bolivia, meaning she’s kind’a like the Bolivian Juan Guaido (is he still a thing?)
Bolivia just happened to have the world’s largest supply of lithium reserves which are super useful for things like the batteries in Teslas. Western capitalists like Musk had been saying how valuable Bolivia’s lithium would be to them, however, Morales struck a $2.3bn deal with China, rather than the US.
Since electric cars are now taking over from petrol cars, lithium could become as important as oil, if it is not already. The US could not let China have control of the bulk of the world’s oil replacement when China is already dominating the electric car industry, so Morales had to go, and a brutal fascist had to be installed in the name of freedom and democracy.
US Puppet Jeanine Anez went on to butcher 57 protesters as confirmed by a Harvard study (the US always allies itself with the nicest people), and when elections came along, Morales’ MAS party regained power while the former leader was in exile. The thing about these “terrible Latin America leaders” that the US is determined to overthrow in the name of democracy is that they’re often hugely popular among their people.
Morales’ ally Luis Arce became Bolivian president and the US has been seething ever since, waiting for the time to try another coup. The US, of course, has spent the last few years insisting it doesn’t need Bolivia’s lithium, and this is just a conspiracy theory, but strangely, the US never goes after countries that don’t have large supplies of natural resources to exploit. Such countries never need an import of democracy, do they?
In this latest coup attempt, the Bolivian military gathered in Plaza Murillo and armoured vehicles smashed into the presidential palace. Arce called on the Bolivian people to rise up and they came onto the streets en masse for their president. Showing balls of steel, Arce confronted Zúñiga in the halls of the presidential palace and said: “I am your captain, and I order you to withdraw your soldiers, and I will not allow this insubordination.”
The Bolivian police later arrested Zúñiga, who, interestingly, was known for having a close relationship with trade unions. It seems likely this was a facade, given he has allegedly been involved in drug trafficking. In 2013, he was accused of embezzling 2.7 million bolivianos ($400,000) from public funds that were intended for pensions and school vouchers. Nice guy.
Zúñiga was appointed by Arce in November 2022, but was later accused by Morales of leading a secret coup group in the army called the Pachajchos. Zúñiga admitted the existence of the group, but denied it was plotting a coup.
Here is where it gets complicated: the MAS party is now divided between the Arce faction and the Morales faction.
Arce is no longer a friend of his former ally and mentor Morales who has decided to stand for re-election against Arce. Both Arce and Zúñiga agree Morales should not be allowed to stand for re-election, presumably because they know he would win. Zúñiga is now claiming the coup attempt was staged for political theatre. This looks like a desperate story to help him escape prison, but who knows?
Whatever is going on, it seems the imperial dream of another fascist dictator butchering Bolivia’s activists and giving the US cheap lithium is probably over for now. This is a sad day for the empire.
When an empire can't even stage a good coup anymore, you know it's in decline.
Another sign of a cracking empire