•  united nations
• Thursday, July 28, 2011
• Inter Press Service

Bolivia and Chile will resume their dialogue on access to the Pacific Ocean from Bolivian territory, the president of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Evo Morales, told reporters Wednesday.

Discussions between Morales and Chilean President Sebastián Piñera, will take place Thursday in Lima following Peruvian President Ollanta Humala’s inauguration. The invitation for the bilateral talks was made Monday by the Bolivian government.

The access to the Pacific Ocean from Bolivia has been a topic of discussion between both governments since 2006 and has had important diplomatic consequences. Both presidents suspended the dialogue after March 23, when Morales announced his intentions to take Chile to international courts.

President Morales says it is not a problem caused by citizens of either countries, and has assured that the dispute has been triggered by 'oligarchies' and transnational companies. He said that 'Chilean people support Bolivian demands'.

Chile has expressed that Bolivia’s requests are a violation of the 1904 Treaty that established the borders between both nations. The countries have studied different proposals and solutions after Bolivia lost access to the Pacific Ocean during the 1879-1883 War of the Pacific.

© Inter Press Service (2011) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service

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