UNASUR backs Bolivian Pres Evo Morales avoids US condemnation (updated)

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UNASUR backs Bolivian Pres Evo Morales avoids US condemnation

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In a recent interview with local Canal 13 which is owned by the Catholic university, the Chilean Minister for Foreign Affairs -Alejandro Foxley- explained his government feared the collapse of the UNASUR Summit last night. Such fears were due to the anti US stand of the Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez who pressed for an American condemnation in the final communique. however, Minister Foxley hailed  the willingness of Chavez to join a consensus in order to guarnatee the success of the UNASUR Summit. The announcement of the Summit by President Chavez on Friday night prior to the official invitation of the UNASUR Pro Tempore Chairman, Michelle Bachelet, created controversy in Chile

Caracas, Venezuela 15 September 2008. After several hours discussing the wording of a communique in Santiago de Chile, the Emergency Summit of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) on Bolivia strongly backed Bolivian President Evo Morales. It recalled Morales had been legitimized by a recall referendum just weeks ago. UNASUR also rejected any attempt against Bolivian democratic institutions. It condemend the recent death at Pando though.

 In a televised message from Santiago, the President of Chile Michelle Bachelet announced the content of the communique which clearly avoided any condemnation of the US nor any particular party in the ongoing conflict in Bolivia. The wording of the UNASUR communique means that the view put forward by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was watered dowm in fovour of a more diplomatic stand as proposed by Brazilian Lula da Silva.  Three UNASUR commissions would be sent to Bolivia to investigate the deaths,  help end the current violence and assist the Bolivian government as it might need it.

Nine President attended the UNASUR emergency summit; Cristina Fernández (Argentina); Lula da Silva (Brasil); Álvaro Uribe (Colombia); Rafael Correa (Ecuador); Fernando Lugo (Paraguay); Tabaré Vásquez (Uruguay), Hugo Chávez (Venezuela), Evo Morales (Bolivia) and Michelle Bachelet (Chile).

Source: Globovision, VTV, YVKE, El Pais.es, RFI, BBC Mundo, Unionradio,