Evo Morales defends ambassador’s expulsion

Last September, Bolivia was involved in a diplomatic row against the U.S. that included the expulsion of Ambassador Philip Goldberg (image) from La Paz. Shortly after being booted from Bolivia, Goldberg defended his actions and denied accusations that he encouraged Peace Corps volunteers to act as spies.

Earlier this week, Bolivian president Evo Morales backed his decision to remove Goldberg:

Bolivian President Evo Morales said Tuesday that the September expulsion of U.S. Ambassador Philip Goldberg was "a success and not a mistake because it "thwarted” an opposition coup plot.

At an evaluation meeting of his third year as president, Morales said that he did not make a mistake in deciding the "ambassador had to go," after his party "had endured the assault of the (Bolivian) right-wing."

Though the diplomatic crisis represented one of several low points between Morales and the White House in 2008, Morales admitted that relations could improve under an Obama administration. "I'm really hopeful ... We need the United States although maybe they don't need Bolivia," Morales mentioned roughly a month before Barack Obama ascends to the U.S. presidency.

Image- BBC News
Online Sources- The Latin Americanist, Xinhua, Reuters