US seeks to ease tensions with Bolivia

A senior US diplomat has said Washington hopes for a "new direction" in troubled relations with Bolivia, where he arrived for…

A senior US diplomat has said Washington hopes for a "new direction" in troubled relations with Bolivia, where he arrived for talks with President Evo Morales.

The visit by Thomas Shannon, the assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, comes eight months after Morales expelled the US ambassador to this South American nation, claiming he had conspired with the opposition to incite violence.

US officials denied it, and former President George W. Bush's administration kicked out Bolivia's ambassador to Washington and suspended trade preferences to the country.

Shannon said his visit follows an agreement between Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Bolivian Foreign Minister David Choquehuanca for officials "to look for a way to deepen our relationship, improve our dialogue and take a new direction in our bilateral relations."

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"We need to improve our cooperation in a way that benefits both countries, and we're here with goodwill," Shannon said at a news conference along with Choquehuanca.

The Bolivian foreign minister said he hopes "this first meeting will serve to begin to correct the injustices of the past."

Shannon also is to meet with Morales today.

The Bolivian government - like its close ally Venezuela - has expressed hope of improved ties under President Barack Obama.

But as recently as last month, Morales said he believed Washington continued to conspire against him.

Morales also suspended cooperation with US Drug Enforcement Administration agents last year, accusing them of espionage and funding "criminal groups" trying to undermine his government. The US in turn added Bolivia to its anti-narcotics blacklist.

"Bush wanted to bring us to our knees, and we don't kneel down," Choquehuanca said.

He said Bolivia's government presented a draft document with principles for improving relations, including "noninterference" in its internal affairs and joint efforts to fight drug trafficking.

The US Embassy said in a statement that Shannon was accompanied by officials from the US Agency for International Development and the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.

AP