Santiago, Chile – In an unprecedented move deemed “historic” here, Chile welcomed with open arms Friday the president of Bolivia, a neighboring nation with which Santiago does not even have diplomatic relations due to a long-simmering territorial dispute.
Bolivian President Evo Morales arrived to attend Saturday’s swearing-in of Michelle Bachelet as Chile’s first woman head of state.
“This is an historic visit for us,” Morales told reporters at Santiago’s international airport.
This marks the first time a Bolivian chief executive attends a presidential inauguration in Chile, and is also Morales’ first foreign trip since he took office Jan. 22.
Some 300 leftist or left-leaning grassroots and political groups have organized a tribute to Morales, an event that will also feature performances by folklore ensembles and popular entertainers.
Accompanied by his foreign minister, David Choquehuanca, and other aides, Morales went from the airport to La Moneda palace, where he was received with full honors by outgoing-President Ricardo Lagos.
“I carry to the Chilean people the best wishes of the Bolivian people and Bolivian government,” the visitor said, calling the planned event in his honor “a sign of brotherhood.”
Santiago and La Paz have had no diplomatic relations since 1978, thanks to their quarrel over a 19th-century war that saw the Bolivians lose their entire Pacific coastline to Chile, which prevailed over the combined forces of Bolivia and Peru.
While La Paz continues to insist on restoration of its access to the ocean as a condition for warmer ties, Morales has chosen to pursue diplomacy rather than confrontation for the time being.
Breaking with past administrations, the Morales government has offered to sell Chile electricity without preconditions, though it rules out sales of natural gas absent a settlement of the coastline issue.
