WikiLeaks paper proves US imperialists "foresaw" a corporate coup against Evo Morales in Bolivia already since 2009

The WIKILEAKS Public Library of US Diplomacy (PlusD) holds the world's largest searchable collection of United States confidential, or formerly confidential, diplomatic communications. As of April 8, 2013 it holds 2 million records comprising approximately 1 billion words. The collection covers US involvements in, and diplomatic or intelligence reporting on, every country on earth. It is the single most significant body of geopolitical material ever published. The PlusD collection, built and curated by WikiLeaks, is updated from a variety of sources, including leaks, documents released under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and documents released by the US State Department systematic declassification review. 

 

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An early 2009 cable from the US embassy in La Paz - Bolivia, is particularly revealing because it proves that the US imperialists were monitoring closely Bolivia's attempt under the Evo Morales presidency to become self-sufficient on exploiting rich Lithium reserves in Salar de Uyuni.

 

Impressively, it seems that the initial information about the very rich reserves of the region had been provided by the Western corporate media info army. This can be seen clearly in the summary at the beginning of the cable where we read that "Recent articles from BBC, the New York Times, and business journals have created substantial buzz about the reportedly large reserves of lithium contained in Bolivia's Uyuni salt flat."

 

More impressively, it seems that the US imperialists were seeking to take advantage of the pilot plant by Bolivia's state mining company, in order to determine whether it would be economically viable to exploit the uncertain then mining status of the specific region. This can be identified several times inside the cable:

                         ... the true quantity of lithium and viability of any mining project will not be known until after the start-up of state mining company COMIBOL's pilot plant in April ...

                         The plant is expected to start production in April 2009, and until that time the feasibility of extraction is not known. 

 

                         A pilot plant would be necessary to determine whether the mineral can be economically extracted ... 

 

                         The Uyuni salt flat represents a reserve that has yet to be sufficiently explored: until the pilot plant shows results, it will not be known if the lithium can be economically extracted.

 

It would be worth to note at this point that according to a 2009 Foreign Policy article, Uyuni salt flat contains 50% to 70% of the world's known lithium reserves.

 

And even more impresively, the final comment at the end of the cable contains a pretty "astonishing" conclusion. That "Bolivia will be the loser if investors decide they would rather play a different game ..."

Well, it took ten years to learn what this "different game" would be, through the coup against Evo Morales during 2019 general election.

Recall that, on July 24, 2020, Tesla’s Elon Musk wrote on Twitter that a second U.S. “government stimulus package is not in the best interests of the people.” Someone responded to Musk soon after, “You know what wasn’t in the best interest of people? The U.S. government organizing a coup against Evo Morales in Bolivia so you could obtain the lithium there.” Musk then wrote: “We will coup whoever we want! Deal with it.”

Cable's most important parts: [emphasis added]

Recent articles from BBC, the New York Times, and business journals have created substantial buzz about the reportedly large reserves of lithium contained in Bolivia's Uyuni salt flat. On February 11, Bolivia's National Mining Director Freddy Beltran announced that four companies--Japan's Mitsubishi and Sumitomo, Frances' Bollore, and Korea's LG--have expressed interest in the Uyuni deposit. Estimates of the grade and the recoverability of the deposit vary greatly, and the true quantity of lithium and viability of any mining project will not be known until after the start-up of state mining company COMIBOL's pilot plant in April (even then data may not be made public).   The Bolivian government, through the state mining company COMIBOL, has begun construction of a small pilot plant to investigate lithium extraction methods in Uyuni. The plant is expected to start production in April 2009, and until that time the feasibility of extraction is not known.  In a 2008 meeting, Emboff spoke with Engineer Huascar Guzman of the Oruro Departmental Mining Ministry, who said that the department has high hopes for exploitation of the Coipasa salt flat's non-metallic deposits (primarily sodium chloride with recoverable levels of potassium and some lithium.) According to Guzman, Potosi's Uyuni salt flat has higher levels of lithium and therefore has attracted more international interest ... A pilot plant would be necessary to determine whether the mineral can be economically extracted, and Guzman said that the prefecture would expect to form 50/50 joint ventures with any interested investors. The national government also expects to maintain an interest in any production at Coipasa, suggesting that potential investors will face two levels of governmental oversight and participation.  Increasing governmental involvement in mining--the new constitution puts the State in charge of every step of the mining process--is a barrier to international investment interest, however. The Bolivian government's stated intention that any lithium mining be "value added" (that is, that lithium batteries would be made in Bolivia) has also caused some investor concern: Bolivia's land-locked location and relatively-untrained workforce do not make it a promising location for high-technology production.  Nationalist sentiment over the lithium reserves is growing, and state mining company COMIBOL has been unwilling to begin working with international investors until the small COMIBOL pilot plant has shown the best processes for lithium extraction. Government officials have stated that they look to international investors for "technical support" but not as full partners. According to Saul Villegas, head of state mining company COMIBOL's lithium division: "The previous imperialist model of exploitation of our natural resources will never be repeated in Bolivia. Maybe there could be the possibility of foreigners accepted as minority partners or, better yet, as our clients."  Many industry observers worry that the Bolivian government has neither the capacity nor wherewithal to successfully exploit the lithium reserves on an economic scale and that President Morales's history of nationalization (of hydrocarbons and companies such as Italian telecom giant ENTEL) will discourage necessary investment. The Uyuni salt flat represents a reserve that has yet to be sufficiently explored: until the pilot plant shows results, it will not be known if the lithium can be economically extracted. Politics also affect the economics of extraction, and the Bolivian government's fundamental antipathy toward capitalism and multinational companies (even non-U.S. companies) will serve to make Uyuni lithium more difficult to extract and therefore more costly. The current hype about Bolivia's lithium reserves has encouraged the Bolivian government to begin a game of "gotcha" with potential investors, but Bolivia will be the loser if investors decide they would rather play a different game in a country where the rules of play are more stable and the dice are not loaded against them.