LA PAZ, Bolivia — President Evo Morales said Wednesday that he is expelling the U.S. ambassador in Bolivia for allegedly inciting violent opposition protests.
Morales’ announcement came hours after his government said a pipeline blast triggered by saboteurs forced the country to cut natural gas exports to Brazil by 10 percent.
“Without fear of the empire, I declare the U.S. ambassador ‘persona non grata,’ ” Morales said in a speech at the presidential palace. He said he asked his foreign minister to send a diplomatic note to Ambassador Philip Goldberg telling the American to go home.
“We don’t want separatists, divisionists,” Bolivia’s leftist president added.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Gordon Duguid called the accusation “baseless” and said the U.S. government had not yet received a note about the ambassador.
The Bolivian leader did not offer specific evidence against Goldberg, but he has long accused the diplomat of conspiring with Bolivia’s conservative opposition.
