PRESS RELEASE
China Backs Bioceanic Rail Route through Bolivia, President Morales Announces
Oct. 7, 2016 (EIRNS)—Bolivian President Evo Morales announced Oct. 5 that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who was visiting the country, had backed the proposed bioceanic rail project to link the Peruvian port of Ilo with Brazil’s port of Santos, going through the Bolivian cities of Cochabamba, Oruro and La Paz, Página 7 reported today.
Morales said he had discussed the matter with Wang Yi when the two met personally, and added that he had "convinced" the Chinese Foreign Minister that the route traversing Bolivia as well as Brazil and Peru (as opposed to the northern route, which only goes thorugh Brazil and Peru) is more important and more practical. "The Brazil-Bolivia-Peru bioceanic train guarantees trade among six South America countries," Morales said (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Bolivia and Peru), Agence France Presse reported, adding that Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay will be able to use the Parana-Paraguay Waterway to connect to the train.
Peruvian diplomatic sources have told EIR that China is favorable to both rail routes. EIR has long proposed both routes as well, since they are both technically solid and South America clearly needs more than one high-speed rail corridor across the continent, linking the Atlantic and the Pacific coasts.
In a couple of weeks, Morales will meet with Peru’s Vice President Martin Vizcarra to discuss the project, and then on Nov. 4, will have further discussion with Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (PPK), when both countries’ cabinets meet in Sucre. At that meeting, Evo said, "we are going to consolidate the [bioceanic] train [project]."
Morales also reported that he hopes to normalize relations with Brazil’s President Michel Temer, "to guarantee the bioceanic train for [regional] integration." When Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff was ousted by an international bankers’ coup, Morales had recalled his ambassador from Brazil for consultation, and relations between the two countries remained tense, although they did not break diplomatic ties.
